! 


i      ! 


li! 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


Breeding  and  Developing 
The  Trotter 


JOHN  BRADBURN 


Breeding  and 
Developing 

The  Trotter 

BY  JOHN   BRADBURN 

For   Twenty-five   Years  Superintendent  of  Village    Farm 
East  Aurora,  New  York 


ILLUSTRATED 


EDITED  BY  ARTHUR  C.  THOMAS 

ASSOCIATE   EDITOR 

American  Horse  Breeder 


AMERICAN  HORSE  BREEDER  PUBLISHING  COMPANY 

BOSTON,  MASSACHUSETTS 

1906 


Copyright,  1906 

BY  AMERICAN   HORSE  BREEDER 
PUBLISHING  COMPANY 


PRESS  OF 

MURRAY  AND  EMERY  COMPANY, 
BOSTON,  MASS. 


PREFACE 

Breeders  of  trotting  stock  have  for  a  long 
time  felt  the  need  of  a  reliable  work  on  the  proper 
selection  of  mares  for  brood  purposes,  giving  in 
detail  the  care  and  treatment  that  they  should 
receive  in  order  to  put  them  in  the  best  possible 
condition  to  impart  vigor  to  their  offspring  and 
also  transmit  to  their  foals  their  own  superior 
qualities  in  the  highest  possible  degree.  They 
have  wanted  a  work  which  will  also  give  minute 
instructions  in  regard  to  the  feed,  exercise  and 
care  of  stallions  at  all  seasons  of  the  year,  par- 
ticularly just  before  and  during  the  service  season, 
and  in  addition  to  the  above,  will  tell  how  to  care 
for  the  foal  and  its  dam  from  the  time  the  young- 
ster is  conceived  until  he  or  she  is  in  fit  condition 
to  place  in  the  hands  of  an  expert  trainer  to  be 
conditioned  for  the  rich  futurities. 

Every  one  interested  in  breeding  trotting  stock, 
and  especially  all  those  just  entering  upon  the 
business,  will  admit  that  such  a  work,  coming 
from  a  man  who  has  had  years  of  successful 
experience  in  the  business  and  knows  every 
detail  of  it  thoroughly,  must  be  of  inestimable 
value. 

Very  few  men  are  qualified  to  furnish  the 
matter  for  such  a  work.  We  have  never  yet 
seen  a  book  of  that  kind,  and  do  not  know  that 
one  has  yet  been  published  that  has  come  from 


PREFACE 

a  man  who  has  been  instrumental  in  breeding 
extreme  speed  of  the  2.10  and  world's  record- 
breaking  sort. 

Judging  by  the  successful  experience  in  caring 
for  the  sires  and  dams  of  2.10  performers,  also 
in  the  care  and  management  of  the  2.10  per- 
formers themselves  during  the  early  period  of 
their  existence,  there  is  no  man  living  who  is  so 
competent  to  furnish  the  materials  of  a  work  of 
this  kind  as  Mr.  John  Bradburn,  who  was  the 
superintendent  of  the  noted  Village  Farm  estab- 
lishment from  a  period  long  before  a  2.15  per- 
former was  ever  bred  there  until  the  dispersal 
sale  of  the  Village  Farm  stock. 

At  the  earnest  and  persistent  solicitation  of 
many  of  his  intimate  friends,  and  also  of  many 
practical  breeders  who  were  not  personally 
acquainted  with  him,  but  who  knew  him  through 
the  reputation  that  he  had  made  as  the  successful 
manager  of  the  renowned  Village  Farm  establish- 
ment, Mr.  Bradburn  was  finally  persuaded  to  put 
on  paper  for  the  benefit  of  trotting-horse  breeders 
the  knowledge  that  he  has  gained  in  the  breeding 
and  care  of  choice  race-winning  trotting  stock 
during  those  many  years  of  experience. 

The  information  contained  within  these  covers 
will  be  of  great  service  to  all  who  are  breeding 
and  raising  or  have  the  care  and  management  of 
trotting  stock  or  light-harness  horses  of  any  kind. 
It  will  be  worth  many  times  its  cost  to  every  one 
who  owns  a  good  brood-mare  or  stallion,  because 
it  is  a  book  of  valuable  facts. 


PREFACE 

It  may  also  be  read  with  interest  and  profit  by 
the  proprietors  and  managers  of  the  most  exten- 
sive breeding  establishments,  men  who  have  had 
years  of  experience  in  the  business,  as  well  as  by 
those  who  breed  and  raise  but  one  or  two  foals 
a  year.  To  those  who  are  about  to  establish 
farms  devoted  to  the  breeding  of  trotters,  or  are 
just  starting  in  the  business  on  a  limited  scale,  it 
will  prove  of  immense  value. 

THE  PUBLISHERS. 


vii 


CONTENTS 

Pages 

Chapter  One.     Personal 1-20 

"Who  Is  He?" 

My  First  Horse 

My  First  Brood-Mare 

Jane  Brown 

Pelham  Tartar  Jr. 

My  First  Stallion 

A  Mare  that  Hambletonian  did  not  Cover 

First  Day  on  a  Race-Track 

Three-Card  Monte 

A  Full-Fledged  Farmer 

A  Hotel  Keeper  and  Public  Trainer 

A  Liveryman 

My  First  Race 

Roading  It 

Ice  Racing 

On  to  Buffalo 

"  Derricked  " 

Back  to  Buffalo 

Superintendent  at  Village  Farm 

A  Betting  System 

Village  Farm  Graduates 

Ideal  Stock  Farm 

Chapter  Two.    The  Village  Farm  Theory 

of  Breeding   21-48 

"World's  Greatest  Trotting  Nursery" 

Mr.  Hamlin's  First  Mare 

Hamlin  Patchen 

Mr.  Hamlin's  First  Team 

Golddust 

Woful 

Mermaid  and  Dictator  Maid 

Weeding  Out 

Nettie  Murphy 

Minnequa  Maid 

Purchasing  a  Premier 

More  Purchases 

Estabella 


CONTENTS 

Almont  Jr.  Pages 

Mambrino  King 

"The  Handsomest  Horse  in  the  World  " 

Chimes 

Golden  Gateway 

Rex  Americus 

Athanio 

Direct  Hal 

The  First  Catalogue 

"  Mr.   Hamlin's  Theory  of  Breeding  " 

The  Brood-Mare's  Importance 

Beauty  and  Speed 

Developed  Sires 

A  Challenge 

Selecting  Brood-Mares 

A  Prediction 

"  The  Passing  of  Village  Farm  " 

Chapter  Three.     Founding  a  Stock  Farm       49-64 

Location 

Soil 

Water 

Size  of  Farm 

Acres  of  Land  per  Head 

The  Track 

Rules  for  Laying  Out  Track 

The  Cinder  Track 

Paddocks 

Fencing 

Stables 

Main  Barn 

Water  in  Paddock 

Brood-Mare  Shed 

The  Farm  Superintendent 


Chapter  Four.    The  Stallion 65-82 

Purchasing  a  Premier 
Over-Developed  Sires 
Concrete  Examples 
Almont  Jr. 
Almonarch 
Natural  Speed 
Blood  Lines 
The  Stallion's  Sire 


CONTENTS 

The  Stallion's  Dam  Pages 

The  Stallion's  Individuality 

My  Ideal  Stallion 

Trotter  vs.  Pacer 

Shall  the  Stallion  be  Raced? 

The  Stud  Season 

Care  of  Stallion 

Feeding 

Covering  the  Mare 

The  Breeding  Pen 

Trial  Sheet  and  Stud  Book 


Chapter  Five.    The  Brood-Mare 83-100 

Best  Way  to  Purchase  Mares 

The  Ideal  Brood-Mare 

Pedigree 

Care 

Preparing  for  the  Foal 

Care  of  Mare  and  Colt  After  Foaling 

Breeding  the  Mare 

Care  of  Mare  and  Colt  in  the  Pasture 

Weaning  the  Colt 

Mare  on  Winter  Diet 

Age  at  which  to  Breed 

Developed  Mares 

Inbreeding 

Selecting  a  Mate 

First  Impressions 

Importance  of  Natural  Speed 


Chapter  Six.     The  Weanling  and  Year- 
ling      101-108 

Halter-Breaking 

Breaking  to  Bit 

Beside  a  Lead  Pony 

Ground-Breaking 

Hooking  to  Cart 

Shoeing 

Developing  Muscles  and  Speed 

"  Dr.  Green  " 

A  Futurity  Candidate 

Feeding 

The  Yearling 


CONTENTS 

Pages 

Chapter  Seven.     The  Two- Year-Old  and 

Older 109-1 14 

Winter  Work 

Spring  Work 

Summer  Work 

Turning  Over  to  a  Trainer 

Use  of  Bandages  and  Washes 

Packing  of  Feet 

Aged  Horses 

Chapter  Eight.     Preparing  for  the  Sales 

and  the  Show  Rings 115-118 

Avoid  Over- Production 
The  Best  Age  at  which  to  Sell 
Preparing  for  Sales 
Culls 

Show  Horses 
.    Preparing  for  Shows 
Incidentals 

Chapter  Nine.    Management  of  a  Stock 

Farm 119-129 

Business  Principles 

The  Superintendent 

The  Trainer 

Grooms 

Sources  of  Revenue 

Advertising  and  Catalogues 

Breeding  Records 

Causes  of  Failures 

Sources  of  Waste 

Chapter  Ten.      Care    of   the    Feet    and 

Teeth 130-134 

Care  of  Feet 

Young  Colts 

Corns 

The  Perfect  Hoof 

Ring-Bone 

After  the  Races 

Thrush 

Care  of  the  Teeth 


CONTENTS 

Pages 
Chapter  Eleven.      Some    Ailments    and 

Disorders i35-J43 

Treatment  of  Barren  Mares 

Sweat  Box 

Treatment  for  Pneumonia 

Distemper 

When  Stallions  are  Dull 

Masturbation 

Navel  Trouble 

Diarrhea. 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

John  Bradburn Frontispiece 

The  Abbot  (2.03^)   ....  opposite  page  n 
Nettie  King  (2.20^)      .     .     .  opposite  page  27 

Prince  Ideal opposite  page  43 

Main  Barn  at  Ideal  Stock  Farm  opposite  page  75 


xlv 


BREEDING  AND 

DEVELOPING 
THE-TROTTER 


Chapter  One 
PERSONAL 

"  Who  Is  He?  "  —  My  First  Horse.  —  My  First  Brood- 
Mare.  —  Jane  Brown.  —  Pelham  Tartar  Jr.  —  My  First 
Stallion.  —  A  Mare  that  Hambletonian  did  not  Cover.  —  First 
Day  on  a  Race  Track.  —  Three  Card  Monte.  —  A  Full 
Fledged  Farmer.  —  A  Hotel  Keeper  and  Public  Trainer.  — 
A  Liveryman. — My  First  Race. — Reading  It.  —  Ice  Racing. — 
On  to  Buffalo.  —  "Derricked." — Back  to  Buffalo. —  Super- 
intendent at  Village  Farm.  —  A  Betting  System.  —  Village 
Farm  Graduates.  —  Ideal  Stock  Farm. 

11  WHO    IS    HE  ?" 

SOME  of  my  readers  will  ask  the  questions, 
"Who  is  this  man  Bradburn?     What  exper- 
ience has  he  had?    Does  he  know  what  he 
is  talking  about?'* 

These  questions  are  pertinent.  It  is  not  enough 
for  me  to  say  that  I  have  had  experience,  covering 
the  points  on  which  I  give  advice, — I  must  ex- 
plain just  what  that  experience  was  and  how  it 
was  obtained.  Here  goes  for  some  of  the  dark 
secrets  of  my  past. 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

I  was  born  in  St.  Catherines,  Ontario,  Canada, 
in  1842.  My  father  died  when  I  was  six  years  old 
and,  as  it  was  necessary  for  me  to  do  something 
to  support  myself,  I  went  on  the  farm  of  George 
Oile,  and  he,  after  a  fashion,  adopted  me.  I  was 
then  about  nine  years  old.  Mr.  Oile's  farm  was 
six  miles  from  St.  Catherines  and  twelve  miles 
from  Niagara  Falls. 

MY    FIRST   HORSE. 

I  was  about  thirteen  years  when  I  came  into 
possession  of  my  first  horse,  a  gray  colt,  which 
Mr.  Oile  gave  me.  It  did  not  have  a  pedigree,  in 
fact,  not  much  attention  was  paid  to  pedigrees  in 
those  days.  The  colt  was  what  would  now  be 
called  a  nice  general-purpose  horse.  Like  all 
boys  in  similar  positions  I  thought  the  colt  was 
the  greatest  one  in  the  world.  I  broke  him  and 
drove  him  till  he  was  four  years  old  and  sold  him 
for  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  which  was  then 
a  lot  of  money  for  a  colt,  especially  to  a  boy. 

I  was  now  seventeen  years  old  and  about  this 
time  I  commenced  working  Mr.  Oile's  farm  on 
shares.  I  gave  considerable  attention  to  the 
breeding  of  thoroughbred  short-horn  cattle  and 
long-wooled  Leicester  sheep  and  this  knowledge 
was  afterwards  of  great  service  to  me  in  the  mat- 
ing of  trotters. 

As  I  have  mentioned,  little  attention  was  then 
paid  to  the  pedigrees  of  trotters,  but,  as  I  liked 
horses,  I  kept  posted  on  such  matters  and  before 
long  became  quite  celebrated,  locally,  as  a  sup- 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

posed  pedigree  expert.  Wilkes'  Spirit  of  the 
Times  was  the  great  trotting  authority  in  the  old 
days  and  all  bets  went  by  Wilkes,  were  he  right 
or  wrong.  In  time  I  came  to  be  known  as  "  Walk- 
ing Wilkes,"  just  as  some  men  are  now  called  "a 
walking  encyclopaedia . ' ' 

MY    FIRST    BROOD-MARE. 

The  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  obtained  by 
the  sale  of  my  colt  went  to  start  a  bank  account 
to  which  I  added  "chicken  money"  from  time 
to  time.  Before  very  long  I  saw  a  gray  mare  I 
liked  and  I  bought  her  for  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  dollars.  She  was  said  to  be  by  Grey 
Messenger,  he  reputed  to  be  a  grandson  of 
Sherman  Morgan.  The  Messenger  horse  is  known 
in  the  Year  Book  as  Hoagland's  Grey  Messenger 
155.  He  had  a  record  of  2.43  and  afterwards 
went  to  New  Jersey. 

My  mare  was  carrying  a  foal  by  Grantham 
Chief  685 1,  a  son  of  Royal  George  9.  She  dropped 
a  gray  filly  which  developed  into  a  very  hand- 
some mare,  but  as  a  three-year-old  she  jumped 
into  a  hay  rack.  I  was  a  pretty  sick  chap  when 
I  went  into  her  stall  and  found  pieces  of  wood 
sticking  into  her  side.  Of  course  she  had  to  be 
killed. 

JANE    BROWN. 

After  the  mare  produced  the  Grantham  Chief 
foal  I  bred  her  to  Prince  of  Wales,  a  son  of  Royal 
George,  owned  by  Alvah  Ditrich  of  St.  Cather- 
ines. I  paid  fifteen  dollars  service  fee  and  the 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

country  people  called  me  crazy.  Farm  mares 
were  usually  sent  to  five-dollar  stallions.  I  al- 
ways liked  to  breed  to  the  best  stallion  I  could 
afford.  There  was  considerable  rivalry  between 
Prince  of  Wales  and  Grantham  Chief,  which  re- 
sulted in  several  match  races,  but  the  former  was 
considered  the  best  in  the  country.  My  mare 
foaled  a  black  filly  by  Prince  of  Wales.  She  is 
known  in  the  books  as  Jane  Brown.  As  a  three- 
year-old  I  sold  her  to  James  Haney  of  St.  Johns, 
Ontario,  for  three  hundred  and  fifty  dollars.  I 
had  trained  her  to  step  around  a  3.10  clip.  The 
second  or  third  time  Haney  took  her  to  a  track 
she  trotted  a  mile  in  three  minutes.  Haney  sold 
her  to  William  H.  Saunders,  one  of  the  famous 
old-time  horsemen,  and  father  of  George  Saun- 
ders, a  well-known  driver  of  to-day.  Saunders 
trained  Jane  Brown  some,  but  she  went  wrong 
and  he  bred  her  to  George  Wilkes  (2.22).  The 
produce  was  Young  Wilkes  (2.28%),  the  sire  of 
thirty-two  in  2.30. 

PELHAM   TARTAR  JR. 

After  foaling  Jane  Brown  I  bred  my  mare  to 
Pelham  Tartar,  a  seal-brown  stallion,  by  Toronto 
Chief,  owned  by  James  Cairns  and  John  Fralick, 
livery  stable  keepers  of  St.  Catherines.  Pelham 
Tartar's  service  fee  was  twenty  dollars  and  when 
I  paid  that  the  neighbors  gave  up  all  hopes  for 
my  sanity.  My  good  opinion  of  the  horse  was 
verified  when  Chandler  J.  Wells  bought  him  for 
five  thousand  dollars.  His  purchase  was  the  sen- 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

sation  of  that  part  of  the  country.  My  mare 
foaled  a  gray  colt,  which  I  called  Pelham  Tartar 
Jr.  I  trained  him  on  "  the  straight  road  "  which 
ran  past  the  farm  and  as  a  three-year-old  showed 
him  at  the  fairs  at  Pelham  and  Grantham,  in  the 
classes  for  style  and  speed,  best  three-year-olds 
to  harness.  I  won  both.  After  this  I  matched 
him  against  a  three-year-old  owned  by  Elias  Pater- 
son  and  Thomas  Calbert  for  one  hundred  dol- 
lars, so  you  see  my  sporting  blood  cropped  out 
young.  The  match  was  trotted  over  the  St.  Cath- 
erines track,  best  three  in  five,  pay  or  play.  As 
my  opponents  were  all  older  men  I  secured  "  Pete  " 
Curran,  a  famous  local  driver,  to  drive  my  colt. 
Later,  when  I  took  to  the  sulky  myself,  I  often 
drove  races  for  him.  Pelham  Tartar  Jr.  won  the 
match  in  three  straight  heats,  best  time  3.03. 
After  the  race  I  sold  my  colt  to  James  Haney, 
who  had  purchased  Jane  Brown,  for  fifteen  hun- 
dred dollars,  and,  of  course,  I  thought  I  had  more 
money  than  any  young  man  in  the  world. 

MY    FIRST    STALLION. 

After  my  mare  had  produced  Pelham  Tartar 
Jr.  I  bred  her  to  Tom  Kimball,  a  chestnut  stallion, 
the  sire  of  Lady  Hill  (2.35),  and  got  a  dark  iron- 
gray  colt,  which  I  called  Tom  Kimball  Jr.  I 
afterwards  purchased  his  sire  for  four  hundred 
dollars  and  made  two  seasons  with  him  in  Pelham 
township.  Tom  Kimball  Jr.  made  a  nice  colt.  I 
did  not  have  time  to  train  him,  and  as  no  other 
trainer  would  do  I  gelded  him  as  a  four-year-old 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

and  sold  him  to  John  Scott  of  Gait,  Ontario,  for 
four  hundred  dollars. 

The  next  season  or  two  my  mare  missed  but 
afterwards  produced  a  gray  filly  and  a  gray  colt 
by  Tom  Kimball.  The  latter  I  sold,  for  a  road 
horse,  to  William  Hamlin. 

A    MARE     THAT    HAMBLETONIAN    DID     NOT    COVER. 

To  show  that  I  always  believed  in  breeding 
mares  to  the  best  stallion  I  could  afford  I  might 
mention  that  after  selling  Pelham  Tartar  Jr.  for 
fifteen  hundred  dollars,  at  which  time  I  had  about 
twenty-two  hundred  dollars  in  the  bank,  I  decided 
to  breed  my  mare  to  Rysdyk's  Hambletonian, 
standing  at  five  hundred  dollars.  I  found  that 
the  freight  and  keep  of  mare  would  cost  an  addi- 
tional one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars.  This  was  a 
lot  of  money  for  a  youngster  to  put  into  a  foal, 
but  Hambletonian  at  that  time  was  on  top,  and  I 
wanted  some  of  his  blood.  No  sooner  had  I  made 
known  my  intention  of  breeding  my  mare  to 
Rysdyk's  Hambletonian  than  George  Oile  and  the 
neighbors  raised  a  terrible  howl,  pronouncing  me 
"  horse  foolish,"  and  some  of  them  went  so  far  as 
to  call  me  insane, — a  monomaniac  would  be  the 
term  nowadays.  Public  sentiment  was  so  strong 
against  me  that  I  did  not  send  the  mare.  I  con- 
sider this  one  of  the  mistakes  of  my  life. 

FIRST   DAY   ON   A   RACE   TRACK. 

One  of  the  memorable  events  of  my  youth  was 
my  first  day  on  a  race  track,  which  was  also  the 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

first  time  I  ever  saw  a  horse  trot  faster  than  2.30. 
It  was  the  day  Flora  Temple  trotted  a  match 
against  Ike  Cook  over  the  St.  Catherines  track. 
By  referring  to  Chester  I  find  the  date  to  be 
November  5,  1859, — I  was  then  seventeen  years 
old.  If  I  remember  rightly  I  should  have  been  in 
school  that  day.  It  was  a  glad  day  for  me,  but  a 
sad  one  for  Joshua  Birch,  a  friend  of  mine.  He 
had  come  to  town  with  a  load  of  wheat  for  his 
father,  had  sold  the  wheat,  and  was  on  the  point 
of  starting  for  home  when  I  saw  him.  He  natur- 
ally asked  me  where  I  was  going. 

"  I'm  going  to  see  the  great  trotter,  Flora 
Temple,"  I  said.  "  Come  along." 

"  Can't  do  it,"  he  said.     "I've  got  to  get  home." 
"  Come  along,"  I  insisted.     "  I'll  pay  your  way 
and  pay  to  have  your  horses  put  up." 

THREE    CARD    MONTE. 

I  had  a  few  dollars  in  my  pocket  and  felt  rich. 
With  a  little  persuasion,  Joshua  was  induced  to 
accompany  me.  After  eating  dinner  we  went  out 
to  the  race  track.  A  few  hundred  feet  from  the 
gate  was  a  ring  of  people.  We  went  up  and  found 
a  three  card  monte  game  in  operation.  It  was  the 
first  one  we  had  ever  seen.  Joshua  kept  his  eyes  on 
the  card  several  minutes  and  then  turned  to  me. 

"I'm  going  to  bet  him  I  can  spot  the  card,"  he 
whispered. 

"  Better  not,"  I  replied.  "  I've  read  about 
such  tricks.  They're  crooked.  Those  fellows 
wouldn't  do  it  for  the  fun  of  the  thing,  you  know." 

7 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

I  could  not  restrain  him.  He  pulled  out  the 
money  he  had  received  for  his  father's  wheat  and 
before  he  stopped  he  had  lost  ten  dollars,  and  felt 
pretty  sore. 

Before  reaching  the  entrance  to  the  race  track 
we  sighted  another  game.  Here  Joshua  decided 
to  try  to  get  even  but  lost  twenty  dollars  more. 
He  was  a  pretty  sick  chap  now,  and  almost  on  the 
verge  of  tears. 

We  walked  about  the  grounds  a  while.  After 
taking  in  the  sights  I  suggested  to  Joshua  that 
we  walk  to  the  stables  to  see  them  hitching  Flora 
Temple.  He  said  he  did  not  care  to,  but  told  me 
to  go  on  and  promised  to  meet  me  later. 

It  was  some  time  before  I  had  seen  enough  of 
Flora  Temple,  and  when  I  returned  to  meet 
Joshua  I  found  him  very  much  "  down  in  the 
mouth."  He  had  tackled  the  card  game  once 
more  and  had  lost  all  his  father's  wheat  money, 
about  sixty-five  dollars  in  all.  He  wanted  me  to 
go  home  with  him,  but  my  fun  was  just  commenc- 
ing, so  I  stayed.  His  afternoon's  pleasure  was 
spoiled  and  he  left.  His  father  was  not  hard  on 
him,  knowing  that  the  experience  had  taught 
Joshua  a  lesson  that  can  be  taken  to  heart  by  all 
young  men.  Flora  Temple  beat  Ike  Cook  in 
2.35,  2.29,  2.27. 

A   FULL-FLEDGED   FARMER. 

As  stated  before,  it  was  about  this  time  I  took 
Mr.  Oile's  farm  to  work  on  shares.  He  gave  me 
a  third  of  all  stock  and  crops  and  the  keep  of  my 

8 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTE 


mare  and  her  produce.  I  did  pretty  well  on  the 
farm  and  dabbled  with  horses  once  in  a  while. 
One  deal  in  particular  I  recall.  I  bought  a  green 
colt  by  Prince  of  Wales,  a  dark  bay,  with  strip  in 
face,  for  sixty  dollars.  His  dam  was  by  a  runner 
called  Grant  ham.  I  trained  the  colt  on  the 
straight  road  and  sold  him  after  three  months 
to  John  Fralick  for  four  hundred  and  fifty  dollars. 
This  established  for  me  a  local  reputation  as 
a  great  colt  trainer  and  one  of  those  "hurrah 
boys." 

A  HOTEL  KEEPER  AND  PUBLIC  TRAINER. 

In  1870  I  tired  of  farming  and,  as  I  had  eight 
thousand  dollars  in  the  bank,  I  purchased  a  hotel 
in  Welland,  Ontario.  Shortly  afterwards  I  entered 
the  state  of  matrimony  and  married  Miss  Sarah 
Davis. 

In  addition  to  running  the  hotel  I  trained  a 
public  stable  of  horses. 

Pelham  Tartar  Jr.  had  not  been  going  well  for 
James  Haney  and,  as  I  thought  I  could  get  him 
straightened  out,  I  bought  him  back  for  six  hun- 
dred dollars.  The  horse  had  been  overtrained  and 
was  low  in  flesh.  I  built  him  up  within  six  or  eight 
weeks  and  started  training  him  over.  In  a  work- 
out shortly  afterwards  Pelham  Tartar  Jr.  trotted 
a  mile  for  me  in  2.40  and  I  sold  him  once  more  to 
Mr.  Haney  for  twelve  hundred  dollars.  He  did 
not  improve  as  he  should  and  as  he  was  a  good- 
sized  horse  and  well  liked  locally  Mr.  Haney  placed 
him  in  the  stud. 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

A    LIVERYMAN. 

In  1872  I  sold  out  my  hotel  and  purchased  a 
brick  block  in  which  were  a  store,  billiard  room 
and  livery  stable.  This  business  kept  me  busy 
for  the  next  three  years  when  I  sold  out  and 
moved  to  St.  Catherines.  In  the  spring  of  1875 
I  ran  a  billiard  room  of  eight  tables,  but  I  did  not 
like  the  business.  It  was  too  confining. 

I  might  say  right  here  that  by  this  time  I  had 
"  gone  broke."  When  the  Canadian  Southern 
Railroad  came  through  and  spoiled  my  livery 
trade  I  foolishly  hung  on  till  I  had  sunk  a  great 
deal  of  money  in  the  business.  Four  horses  were 
doing  my  work  while  formerly  I  needed  twenty. 
To  cap  it  all  I  went  on  a  bond  for  several  thousand 
dollars  and  had  to  make  good. 

MY   FIRST   RACE. 

I  might  previously  have  described  the  first  race 
in  which  I  ever  drove.  This  was  a  match  race 
between  a  three-year-old  by  Grantham  Chief, 
which  I  had  purchased  for  one  hundred  dollars, 
and  another  local  horse  of  the  same  age.  The 
match  was  for  seventy-five  dollars  a  side.  I  won 
in  one — two — three  order,  time  about  3.15,  3.20, 
3.25.  The  same  party  asked  for  a  return  match 
in  two  weeks,  for  fifty  dollars  a  side,  and  this  I 
also  won  in  three  straight  heats. 

ROADING   IT. 

One  of  my  first  campaigns  was  with  Pelham 
Tartar  Jr.  and  a  little  running  horse  called  Charles 

10 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

Stewart.  I  traveled  over  the  road  from  town  to 
town,  as  we  all  did  in  those  days,  racing  at  Ham- 
ilton, Gait,  Mitchell  and  Toronto.  I  had  no  suc- 
cess :  the  horses  took  sick,  the  weather  was  hot, 
and  the  runner  lost  his  speed,  so  we  came  home, 
making  a  very  sorry-looking  spectacle. 

In  1876  I  had  fair  success  with  my  public 
stable.  In  my  string  were  Lady  Hill,  Dominion 
Boy,  Brown  Dick,  Douglas,  Quaker  Boy  and 
Lady  H. 

One  of  the  noted  races  of  those  days  in  which  I 
drove  was  trotted  on  September  15,  1876,  at 
Woodbine  Track,  Toronto,  Ontario.  It  was  one 
of  the  greatest  betting  races  ever  seen  on  any  race 
track  in  Ontario,  before  or  since.  There  was  in 
the  neighborhood  of  forty  or  fifty  thousand  dol- 
lars in  the  box.  St.  Patrick  and  Lady  Hill  were 
about  equally  well  liked,  the  selling  on  them 
switching  from  one  hundred — eighty  to  ninety — 
one  hundred.  The  field — Gray  Eddy,  William 
W.  and  Stayer — brought  little.  I  won  the  first 
heat  with  Lady  Hill,  the  time  hung  out  being  2.35. 
In  reality  it  was  2.29^.  St.  Patrick  won  the  next 
heat  in  2.35^*  really  2.29^,  and  the  third  heat 
in  2.35,  really  2.30.  After  this  he  tired  and  I  won 
the  fourth  heat  in  2.40  (2.31).  On  account  of 
darkness  the  race  was  postponed.  It  commenced 
raining  that  night  and  rained  all  the  next  day. 
The  following  day  was  Sunday.  On  Monday  we 
trotted  the  race  off.  St.  Patrick  won  in  the 
announced  time  of  2.35,  which  was  2.29^  to  the 
best  of  my  recollection. 

ii 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

After  this  race  I  roaded  my  horses  to  Oshawa, 
Ontario,  twenty-three  or  twenty-four  miles  north 
of  Toronto.  It  was  the  first  meeting  over  a  new 
track.  I  won  the  3.00  and  2.50  trots  with  Doug- 
las, and  the  2.34  and  free-for-all  trots  with  Lady 
Hill,  which  cleaned  up  the  card  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  county  race. 

ICE    RACING. 

In  the  winter  of  1876,  Mr.  Eli  Gregory  gave  me 
the  bay  gelding  Alexander,  by  Bett's  St.  Law- 
rence, dam  by  Pelham  Tartar,  to  get  ready  for  the 
ice  races.  I  also  had  the  gray  gelding  Monk  Boy. 
My  first  start  on  the  ice  was  at  Dunville,  Ontario, 
the  last  week  in  December.  I  also  raced  at  Brant- 
ford,  St.  Catherines,  Toronto,  Ottawa,  and  Mon- 
treal, shipping  home  about  April  15.  Monk  Boy 
won  every  race  in  which  he  started ;  Alexander, 
every  race  but  one,  winning  fourteen  out  of  fifteen 
starts.  He  started  twice  at  Dunville,  Brant  ford 
and  St.  Catherines  and  three  times  at  Toronto, 
Ottawa  and  Montreal.  He  won  two  heats  and 
second  money  in  his  losing  race.  It  was  a  very 
successful  season.  Alexander  was  afterwards  sold 
to  John  Reardon  of  St.  Catherines  for  one  thou- 
sand nine  hundred  and  seventy-five  dollars.  He 
was  a  very  peculiar  horse,  in  that  he  would 
always  take  the  colic  if  fed  a  bran  mash, 

ON   TO    BUFFALO. 

In  the  spring  of  1877  I  moved  to  the  Buffalo 
(N.  Y.)  Driving  Park  and  opened  a  public  train- 

12 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

ing  stable.  It  was  in  this  year  I  first  met  Mr. 
C.  J.  Hamlin,  in  whose  employ  I  was  afterwards 
destined  to  be  for  some  twenty-five  years.  He 
was  a  regular  visitor  to  the  track.  During  1877 
I  campaigned  Monk  Boy,  Jim  Ash,  Black  Bear, 
Gray  Salem,  etc. 

In  1878  I  campaigned  Alexander  and  two  others 
through  Canada,  Michigan  and  Northern  New 
York. 


"  DERRICKED." 


In  1878  occurred  the  first  and  only  time  I  was 
taken  out  of  the  sulky.  On  September  12,  I  was 
racing  Jim  White  (2.31)  at  Elmira,  N.  Y.  In  the 
same  race  were  Nell  Parks,  Monk  Boy,  Helen  R., 
Lady  Wonder  and  Elliot.  Elliot  won  the  first 
heat.  Lady  Wonder  won  the  next  heat  and  dis- 
tanced Elliot.  I  had  given  the  owner  of  Jim 
White  some  of  my  money  to  play  on  the  horse, 
so  after  the  second  heat  I  went  to  him  and  said  : 
' '  I  think  we  stand  a  chance  to  win. "  ' '  All  right, ' ' 
he  replied,  "  your  money  is  down.*'  The  "next 
heat  I  won  and  Lady  Wonder  was  distanced. 
I  won  the  fourth  heat  also.  Then  the  owner  came 
to  me  and  told  me  not  to  win  another  heat  till 
instructed.  I  was  between  the  devil  and  deep 
sea.  My  financial  condition  was  such  that  I 
could  not  afford  to  antagonize  the  owner.  I  had 
no  religious  compunction  against  dropping  a  heat 
now  and  then,  if  it  would  help  my  horse  to  win, 
but  in  this  instance  the  field  had  narrowed  down. 
My  horse  outclassed  everything,  and  could  win 

13 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

easily.  I  asked  the  owner  why  it  was  necessary 
to  drop  the  heat.  He  then  confessed  that  he  had 
played  against  his  gelding  all  the  time  and  had 
played  my  money  also.  I  informed  him  that  it 
was  a  nice  time  to  tell  me  about  it  and  advised 
him  to  play  off  as  much  of  our  money  as  he  could 
and  let  me  win.  He  would  not  consent  to  this  so 
I  dropped  the  next  heat.  It  was  won  by  Nelly 
Parks.  The  race  was  then  postponed  and  only 
two  of  us  were  left  to  finish.  That  evening  I  was 
called  to  the  telephone.  It  was  about  the  first 
time  I  had  used  one.  A  friend  down  town  in- 
formed me  that  it  was  reported  I  would  be  taken 
out  of  the  sulky  the  next  day.  It  did  not  sur- 
prise me  any, — in  fact  was  just  what  I  expected. 
I  now  figured  out  that  if  I  wished  to  protect  my- 
self and  not  stand  liable  to  expulsion  I  would  have 
to  see  to  it  that  the  gelding  lost.  I  sat  up  almost 
all  night  whittling  a  pair  of  wooden  toe-weights, 
which  I  colored  to  resemble  the  metal  ones. 
These  weighed  one  and  one  half  ounces,  whereas 
the  horse  had  been  using  six-ounce  weights.  Sure 
enough  the  next  day,  when  Jim  White  and  Nelly 
Parks  came  out  to  trot  off  the  race,  the  judges 
took  me  down  and  put  up  Jimmy  Goldsmith. 
Jim  White  was,  of  course,  unsteady  and  they 
scored  seventeen  times.  I  was  called  to  the 
stand.  The  judges  told  me  to  stay  near  and 
added  that  if  the  horses  did  not  get  the  word  on 
the  next  score  I  would  be  put  back,  as  they 
thought  I  might  make  a  better  showing.  I  had 
previously  promised  to  try  to  win  if  they  would 

14 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

let  me  drive.  In  the  next  score  Goldsmith  took 
the  gelding  way  back.  Jim  White  stayed  on  his 
feet  but  was  far  in  the  rear.  Goldsmith  nodded 
for  the  word  and  it  was  given.  The  horse  made 
a  double  break  on  the  first  turn  and  I  gave  a  sigh 
of  relief.  When  he  got  settled  at  the  quarter 
pole,  Nelly  Parks  was  entering  the  head  of  the 
stretch  the  first  time  round.  Jim  White  set  sail 
and  trotted  so  much  faster  than  she  that  he  easily 
won  in  2.37  >£,  which  was  five  seconds  faster  than 
any  heat  in  the  race.  He  trotted  the  last  half  in 
i.ioj/2-  The  judges  awarded  Goldsmith  fifty 
dollars  of  the  winnings  for  driving  and  mercifully 
let  me  off  with  a  lecture.  No  judge  ever  had 
occasion  thereafter  to  take  me  out  of  the  sulky. 
I  had  had  enough  of  that  sort  of  business. 

This  is  one  instance  which  upholds  a  theory  of 
mine  that  more  drivers  are  made  to  do  crooked 
things  by  their  employers  than  do  so  on  their  own 
account.  And  just  here,  one  word  of  advice  to 
all  young  trainers  :  Win  by  all  means  if  you  can. 

BACK   TO   BUFFALO. 

In  1879  I  returned  to  Buffalo  and  opened  a 
public  stable.  I  had  sixteen  horses,  including 
Monk  Boy,  Gray  Salem  and  Lady  Upton.  That 
fall  Mr.  C.  J.  Hamlin  placed  in  my  stable  Rockey, 
Almont  Jr.  and  Knox.  In  February,  1880,  I 
engaged  to  go  to  East  Aurora,  N.  Y.,  to  take 
charge  of  Mr.  Hamlin's  horses. 

At  this  point  mention  might  be  made  of  a  race 
which  did  more  to  bring  me  close  to  Mr.  Hamlin 

15 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

than  any  one  thing.  This  was  the  race  of  August 
7,  1879,  in  which  were  entered  Kate  Hall,  Daciana 
Gloster,  Lady  Upton,  Argonaut,  Nigger  Baby 
and  Lady  B.  I  was  second  the  first  and  second 
heats  with  Lady  Upton  and  thought  I  stood  a 
chance  to  win,  but  the  owner  did  not  want  me  to 
so  I  asked  him  to  drive.  After  the  fifth  heat  my 
mare  was  ruled  out  and  the  race  postponed  on 
account  of  darkness.  The  judges  had  not  been 
satisfied  with  the  way  McLaughlin  had  driven 
Kate  Hall,  which  had  two  heats  to  her  credit. 
They  took  the  mare  away  from  him  and  placed 
her  in  charge  of  the  police,  and  brought  her  to 
my  stable  where  she  remained  under  police  pro- 
tection all  night.  The  judges  asked  me  to  drive 
her  the  next  day.  After  I  had  jogged  Kate  Hall 
in  the  morning  the  judges,  C.  J.  Hamlin,  Chandler 
J.  Wells  and  Myron  P.  Bush,  visited  me  and 
looked  over  the  mare.  They  asked  about  her 
condition  and  I  told  them  the  mare  seemed  to  be 
all  right  and  had  taken  her  jog  work  nicely.  They 
cautioned  me  against  having  any  of  her  harness 
changed  and  told  me  to  be  sure  to  drive  to  win, 
adding  that  if  I  did  not  the  heat  would  be  called 
no  heat  and  another  driver  put  up.  I  told  them 
I  would  drive  according  to  instructions.  I  re- 
member Mr.  Hamlin 's  remark  :  "  Bradburn  will 
win  if  he  can ;  I  know  he  will."  After  it  became 
noised  about  that  I  would  drive  Kate  Hall  I  was 
offered  fifteen  hundred  dollars  to  pull  the  mare 
and  lose  the  race.  Of  course  I  refused,  although 
I  needed  the  money.  Another  party  offered  me 

16 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

two  thousand  dollars  to  turn  the  same  trick.  I 
had  no  difficulty  in  winning,  much  to  the  satis- 
faction of  Mr.  Hamlin  and  the  other  judges  and 
the  owner,  Mr.  Hamilton.  I  was  awarded  one 
hundred  dollars  for  driving. 

SUPERINTENDENT   AT   VILLAGE    FARM. 

Village  Farm,  as  Mr.  Hamlin  named  his  farm, 
because  it  was  located  within  the  village  limits, 
grew  rapidly  and  in  1880  Mr.  Hamlin  decided  he 
needed  a  superintendent.  He  selected  me. 

From  that  time  my  duties  were  to  manage  the 
Village  Farm  in  all  its  departments,  and  to  be 
able  each  fall  to  turn  a  stable  of  prospects  over 
to  the  Village  Farm  trainers. 

A    BETTING   SYSTEM. 

I  might  mention  here  an  incident  which  oc- 
curred in  1 88 1  while  I  was  racing  Rockey  for 
Mr.  Hamlin,  at  which  time  Mr.  Hamlin  gave  me 
some  advice  which  I  took  to  heart  and  profited 
by,  as  many  others  might  well  do. 

Rockey  looked  very  good  for  a  certain  race  and 
I  played  almost  all  my  money  on  him  and  lost. 
Mr.  Hamlin  heard  of  it.  "  Bradburn,"  he  said, 
"make  it  a  rule  never  to  bet  more  than  ten  per  cent 
of  your  money  on  a  horse  race.  Then  if  you  lose 
you  have  ninety  per  cent  to  commence  on  the  next 
morning.  They  can't  break  you  that  way  whether 
you  are  worth  a  hundred  or  a  hundred  thousand." 

Billy  Sargent  had  heard  of  my  tough  luck  and 
felt  sorry,  so  he  told  me  he  thought  he  had  an 

17 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

excellent  chance  to  win  with  Josephus.  I  bor- 
rowed twenty  dollars  and  bought  two  ten-dollar 
tickets  which  called  for  one  hundred  and  ninety 
dollars  and  one  hundred  and  seventy  dollars 
respectively.  Josephus  won  the  first  two  heats, 
then  Fanny  Witherspoon  the  third  and  fourth. 
The  race  was  postponed.  I  was  not  so  confident 
as  I  might  have  been.  My  confidence  was  shaken 
when  Crit  Davis  came  to  Mr.  Hamlin  and  sold 
him  Betty  Mac,  a  half  sister  of  Fanny  Wither- 
spoon and  then  in  Kentucky,  for  five  hundred 
dollars,  so  as  to  have  more  money  to  place  on  the 
Witherspoon  mare.  Betty  Mac  is  the  dam  of  E.  S. 
E.  (2.nM)  and  Red  Regent  (2.18%),  and  the 
grandam  of  Ed.  Easton  (4)  (2.09%)  and  third  dam 
of  American  Belle  (3 )  (2 . 1 2  M)  •  I  went  back  to  Jo- 
sephus' stall  and  helped  work  on  him  that  night. 
No  horse  received  better  attention.  It  was  a 
matter  of  life  and  death  with  me.  Josephus  won 
the  deciding  heat.  This  put  me  on  my  feet  and 
by  the  end  of  the  meeting  I  had  eight  hundred 
dollars.  After  that  I  tried  to  follow  Mr.  Ham- 
lin's  advice  about  betting  only  ten  per  cent  of  one's 
money  on  a  race,  and  never  since  then  has  John 
Bradburn  been  broke,  although  at  times  perhaps 
he  has  been  "  bent." 

VILLAGE    FARM    GRADUATES. 

After  I  became  superintendent,  the  first  trainer 
at  Village  Farm  was  Frank  Baldwin,  who  was 
employed  in  1882  and  1883.  Horace  Brown  was 
the  next  trainer,  and  his  connection  lasted  from 

18 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

1884  to  1888,  with  W.  J.  Andrews,  Malem  Brown 
and  Arthur  Brown  as  assistants.  Andrews  was 
head  trainer  during  1889  and  1890,  with  great 
success.  James  Brigham  was  his  assistant.  In 
1891  there  was  no  regular  trainer.  The  horses 
were  prepared  by  George  Moore  and  Billy  Powell 
and  turned  over  to  Ed.  Geers  to  be  driven  in  races. 
In  1892  Mr.  Geers  was  engaged  as  a  regular 
trainer,  and  filled  the  position  until  1904,  after 
which  time  Ben.  F.  White,  Mr.  Geers'  assistant, 
took  charge  and  was  head  trainer  until  the  Vil- 
lage Farm  was  dispersed  at  the  Fasig-Tipton 
Company's  midwinter  sale  of  February,  1905. 

While  Mr.  Geers  was  head  trainer  the  following 
were  engaged  as  his  assistants  at  various  times  : 
Charlie  Lyons,  Charlie  Niles,  Harry  Benedict  and 
Ben.  F.  White. 

The  following  have  also  trained  at  Village 
Farm  :  Alonzo  McDonald,  L.  A.  Dovel,  Theodore 
Allen,  Dave  Clippenger,  Lafe  Schaeffer,  John 
Graham,  J.  Scott  Croy,  W.  L.  Rhodes,  George 
Bodimer,  John  Alward,  Patsy  Ready,  Frank 
Vorhees,  George  Foster  and  James  Humes. 

Many  of  the  prominent  drivers  of  to-day,  be- 
cause of  their  former  connection  with  the  Village 
Farm,  are  known  as  "  Village  Farm  Graduates." 

A  graduate  of  the  Village  Farm  office  force, 
well  known  to  all  horsemen,  is  E.  J.  Tranter,  for 
many  years  cashier  at  Village  Farm,  afterwards 
senior  partner  of  Tranter-Kenney  Company,  and 
now  manager  of  the  trotting  department  of  Fasig- 
Tipton  Company. 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

IDEAL    STOCK   FARM. 

Just  previous  to  the  Village  Farm  dispersal 
sale,  Messrs.  S.  H.  Knox  and  Daniel  Good  of  Buf- 
falo, N.  Y.,  visited  Village  Farm  and  informed  me 
that  they  had  decided  to  embark  in  the  breeding 
business,  starting  where  Mr.  Hamlin  left  off. 
They  marked  several  horses  which  they  liked, 
secured  them  at  the  sale  and  founded  the  Ideal 
Stock  Farm,  East  Aurora,  N.  Y.  They  employed 
Ben.  F.  White  as  trainer  and  afterwards  engaged 
me  as  superintendent.  My  candid  opinion  is, 
considering  the  quality  of  their  horses,  that  they 
have  started  nearer  right  than  any  others  who, 
to  my  knowledge,  have  ever  entered  the  business. 


20 


Chapter  Two 

THE    VILLAGE    FARM    THEORY 
OF  BREEDING 

"World's  Greatest  Trotting  Nursery." — Mr.  Hamlin's 
First  Mare. —  Hamlin  Patchen. —  Mr.  Hamlin's  First  Team. 
—  Golddust. —  Woful. —  Mermaid  and  Dictator  ^  Maid. — 
Weeding  Out. —  Nettie  Murphy. —  Minnequa  Maid. —  Pur- 
chasing a  Premier. —  More  Purchases. —  Estabella. —  Almont 
jr — Mambrino  King. —  "The  Handsomest  Horse  in  the 
World." —  Chimes. —  Golden  Gateway. —  Rex  Americus. — 
Athanio. —  Direct  Hal. —  The  First  Catalogue. —  Mr.  Ham- 
lin's "Theory  of  Breeding." —  The  Brood-mare's  Importance. — 
Beauty  and  Speed. —  Developed  Sires. —  A  Challenge. —  Select- 
ing Brood-mares. —  A  Prediction. —  "The  Passing  of  Village 
Farm." 

THIS  chapter  will  not  be  statistical  nor  en- 
tirely historical.      I  will  attempt  to  show 
how  certain  things  were  accomplished  at 
Village  Farm  so  that  the  successful  results  may 
serve  as  an  example  to  the  younger  generation 
of  breeders. 

WORLD'S  GREATEST  TROTTING  NURSERY. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  Village  Farm 
earned  its  sobriquet  of  "  World's  Greatest  Trot- 
ting Nursery"  by  breeding  more  2.10  performers, 
among  them  many  world's  champions,  than  any 
other  breeding  establishment,  and  winning  more 
money  on  the  Grand  Circuit  than  any  other  farm. 
Therefore,  any  breeder  that  "  follows  its  lead  " 

21 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

and  begins  where  it  left  off  will  not  be  left 
behind.  Messrs.  Knox  and  Good,  in  my  opinion, 
have  realized  this  better  than  any  others,  as  will 
be  seen  by  reading  a  portion  of  the  announce- 
ment of  their  first  catalogue,  that  of  1905  : 

"  In  establishing  Ideal  Stock  Farm  it  has  been 
our  aim  to  use,  for  foundation  material,  stallions 
and  brood-mares  bred  on  the  most  advanced  lines 
and  representing  the  results  of  the  life  work  of  the 
man  who  accomplished  more  in  the  way  of  breed- 
ing race-horses  of  extreme  speed  than  any  one 
breeder.  When  the  Village  Farm  was  dispersed, 
it  was  there  we  looked  to  secure  the  foundation 
for  the  Ideal  Stock  Farm,  for  the  reason  that  Vil- 
lage Farm  stood  far  in  advance  of  all  others  in 
the  production  of  horses  possessing,  in  combina- 
tion with  speed,  the  beauty  of  conformation  which 
enables  them  to  win  the  highest  honors  in  the 
show  ring  where  beauty  and  good  individuality 
are  the  qualities  demanded." 

Mr.  Hamlin's  desire  to  combine  beauty  and 
speed  was  born  of  an  admiration,  in  the  early 
days,  of  such  stallions  as  Ethan  Allen  and  George 
M.  Patchen. 

Mr.  Hamlin  used  to  say  :  "  When  you  go  into 
a  ball-room  you  would  much  rather  choose  as  a 
partner  a  beautiful  woman  that  can  dance  well 
than  a  homely  one  that  can  dance  equally 
well."  He  held  similar  views  concerning  beauti- 
ful horses  with  speed  and  horses  with  speed  but 
which  did  not  come  up  to  his  standard  of 
beauty, 

22 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

MR.  HAMLIN'S  FIRST  MARE. 

The  first  mare  Mr.  Hamlin  ever  owned  was 
Little  Belle,  by  Sherman  Black  Hawk,  from  the 
famous  old-time  race  mare  Belle  of  Saratoga 
(2.29),  by  Vermont  Black  Hawk.  Little  Belle 
was  used  as  a  road  mare  by  her  owner,  then  a 
country  store-keeper  in  East  Aurora,  N.  Y.  Mr. 
Hamlin  bred  her  to  Addison,  a  son  of  Vermont 
Black  Hawk,  standing  at  Corning,  N.  Y.,  and 
the  produce  was  Mag  Addison.  The  latter  was 
also  used  as  a  road  mare  and  in  1862  was  bred  to 
George  M.  Patchen,  then  the  champion  trotting 
stallion  and  standing  at  one  hundred  dollars. 
The  produce  was  Hamlin  Patchen. 

It  was  previous  to  breeding  Hamlin  Patchen, 
1857,  to  be  exact,  that  Mr.  Hamlin  purchased 
the  original  sixty-six  acres  of  Village  Farm  proper. 
This  he  added  to  from  time  to  time. 

Mr.  Hamlin  thought  a  great  deal  of  Hamlin 
Patchen,  his  first  stock  horse,  as  will  be  seen  from 
a  portion  of  the  announcement  in  the  1884  Village 
Farm  catalogue. 

HAMLIN    PATCHEN. 

"  As  I  have  so  many  of  the  descendants  of 
Hamlin  Patchen  at  Village  Farm  a  few  words 
about  him  may  prove  of  interest  to  those  who 
turn  the  pages  of  this  catalogue.  He  was  foaled 
in  1862,  and  was  sired  by  George  M.  Patchen,  one 
of  the  finest-looking  horses  that  ever  struck  the 
turf,  and  one  of  the  fastest  of  his  day.  He  made 
a  record  of  2.23^,  and  2.30  performers  came  from 

23 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

his  loins.  Hamlin  Patchen  is  a  strong,  blocky- 
built  black,  standing  nearly  15.3  hands,  and 
when  three  years  old  I  had  hopes  that  he  would 
show  the  speed  of  his  distinguished  sire,  but  he 
was  frightened  by  a  dog,  ran  away  to  wagon  and 
injured  himself.  Thus  he  was  compelled  to  enter 
the  stud  without  obtaining  a  turf  record.  His 
sons  and  daughters  are  hardy  and  pleasant 
drivers." 

Hamlin  Patchen's  injury  was  a  peculiar  one. 
He  was  standing  hitched  on  a  barn  floor  when  a 
dog  ran  through  the  stable.  The  horse  reared 
and  fell  backwards,  injuring  his  spine.  On  get- 
ting up  he  bolted  out  the  door  and  while  running 
away  further  injured  himself. 

MR.  HAMLIN'S  FIRST  TEAM. 

After  securing  Little  Belle,  one  of  Mr.  Hamlin's 
next  purchases  was  the  team  Tidy  and  LaBlonde, 
full  sisters  by  Ethan  Allen.  They  cost  about  six 
hundred  dollars.  Mr.  Hamlin  could  drive  them 
double  close  to  2.30.  He  could  drive  a  double 
team  better  than  any  man  I  ever  saw.  These 
mares  were  sold  to  H.  N.  Smith,  of  the  Fashion 
Stud  Farm,  Trenton,  N.  J.,  for  four  thousand 
dollars.  Tidy  was  bred  to  Jay  Gould  and  pro- 
duced the  dam  of  Boodle  (2.12^). 

GOLDDUST. 

One  of  Mr.  Hamlin's  next  purchases  was  Gold- 
dust,  by  Dorsey's  Golddust,  dam  by  imported 
Glencoe.  L.  L.  Dorsey  had  sent  what  he  con- 

24 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

sidered  the  best  daughter  of  Golddust  to  Rysdyk's 
Hambletonian,  hoping  to  get  a  stallion  colt.  The 
produce  was  the  mare  Bay  Hambletonian.  He 
bred  the  Golddust  mare  back  and  that  fall  shipped 
the  mare  and  filly  at  side  to  Kentucky,  via  Buf- 
falo. He  unloaded  at  East  Buffalo  in  order  to 
give  the  mare  and  colt  a  rest,  and  invited  his 
friend,  Mr.  Hamlin,  to  see  them.  Mr.  Hamlin 
liked  both  so  well  he  bought  them  for  twelve  hun- 
dred dollars,  as  I  remember  it.  Unfortunately, 
the  mare  proved  not  with  foal  and  was  barren  for 
several  seasons.  Finally,  to  the  service  of  Ham- 
lin Patchen,  Golddust  produced  Black  Golddust, 
dam  of  Justina  (2.13  to  pole,  2.20  to  harness)  and 
Glendennis  (2.17*4),  and  grandam  of  The  Monk 
(2.05%),  etc. 

WOFUL. 

In  1873  Mr.  Hamlin  bought  Woful  by  Min- 
chen's  Woful,  from  a  Mr.  Minchen  of  Orange 
County,  N.  Y.  She  is  the  third  dam  of  Pass- 
ing Belle  (2.08^)  and  the  fourth  dam  of  Lord 
Derby  (2.05%)  (winner  of  seventy-four  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  twenty-five  dollars  on  the 
Grand  Circuit),  Fantasy  (2.06)  and  Shadow 
Chimes  (2.05). 

MERMAID   AND   DICTATOR   MAID. 

In  1875  Mr.  Hamlin  purchased  Mermaid  and 
Dictator  Maid,  both  by  Dictator,  paying  for  the 
former  twenty-five  hundred  dollars  and  the  latter 
fifteen  hundred  dollars.  He  liked  the  Dictator 

25 


BREEDING   THE    TROTTER 

strain  and  once  offered  twenty-one  thousand  dol- 
lars for  Dictator  when  he  was  twenty-one  years 
old.  Mermaid  founded  a  family  and  is  the  fourth 
dam  of  Dare  Devil  (2.09).  Dictator  Maid  is  the 
grandam  of  Globe  (2.14%). 

WEEDING    OUT. 

On  a  rainy  day  in  July,  1880,  Mr.  Hamlin 
visited  the  farm,  and,  calling  me  into  the  office, 
said  : 

"  Bradburn,  what  do  you  think  of  my  horses? 
I  want  your  candid  opinion.  A  horse  is  a  horse, 
and  a  man  is  a  man,  be  he  good  man  or  bad  man." 

My  reply  was,  "  Mr.  Hamlin,  what  I  would  say 
to  you  about  your  horses  would  make  you  angry." 

He  said,  "  No,  it  will  not.     Spit  it  out." 

Then  I  told  him  that  were  I  a  wealthy  man 
breeding  trotters,  with  the  exception  of  four  or 
five  mares  and  Almont  Jr.,  I  wouldn't  take  his 
horses  as  a  gift. 

He  studied  over  this  awhile  and  then  he  asked 
me  which  ones  I  would  take. 

I  replied  that  I  liked  Almont  Jr.  very  much,  on 
account  of  his  style,  finish  and  his  having  a  great 
deal  of  natural  speed  for  those  days.  My  choice 
of  the  brood-mares  was  Bay  Hambletonian, 
Miranda,  Toy  and  Black  Golddust.  Among  the 
fillies  I  liked  Belle  Hamlin,  her  sister,  Belle  Sloan, 
and  Justina. 

Naturally  my  selections  out  of  fifty  head  were 
a  matter  of  argument.  Many  of  those  I  rejected 
were  by  Hamlin  Patchen  and  Royal  George. 

26 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

They  were  not  good  individuals.  I  told  Mr.  Ham- 
lin  that  from  what  knowledge  I  had  gained  in 
breeding  horses,  cattle,  sheep,  pigs,  chickens 
(especially  game  chickens),  dogs,  cats,  etc.,  I  was 
certain  the  families  would  not  do. 

It  was  now  nearly  train  time  so  Mr.  Hamlin 
asked  me  to  prepare  a  list  of  the  horses  which  I 
considered  undesirable  and  have  it  ready  for  him 
the  next  time  he  visited  the  farm. 

One  of  the  first  questions  he  asked  on  this  next 
visit  was,  "  Have  you  that  list  ready?" 

"  Yes,  sir,"  I  replied. 

He  looked  it  over  and  ordered  me  to  sell  all 
horses  listed  as  soon  as  possible. 

I  suggested  that  he  place  a  value  on  them. 

"  Ask  a  good,  fair  price,"  were  his  instructions, 
"  but  accept  any  offer  you  may  get." 

And  thus  the  least  desirable  animals  were 
weeded  out. 

NETTIE    MURPHY. 

In  1 88 1  Mr.  Hamlin  purchased  Nettie  Murphy, 
for  two  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  from  Thomas  J. 
Murphy  of  Buffalo.  Bred  to  Mambrino  King 
she  produced  Nettie  King  (2.20*4),  dam  of  The 
Abbot  (2.03^),  and  The  Beau  Ideal  (2.15^). 

MINNEQUA    MAID. 

The  same  year  (1881)  Mr.  Hamlin  and  myself 
went  to  look  at  Woods'  Hambletonian,  owned  by 
Joseph  Woods  &  Bros.,  of  Knoxville,  Penn.  This 
stallion  was  then  coming  before  the  public  as  a 

27 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

sire,  despite  his  limited  opportunities  because  of 
his  standing  at  an  out-of-the-way  place.  Woods' 
Hambletonian  was  a  roan  horse  and  then  twenty- 
three  years  old.  Mr.  Hamlin  offered  six  thou- 
sand dollars  for  him,  but  this  was  refused  and 
seven  thousand  five  hundred  asked.  While  on 
this  farm  Mr.  Hamlin  paid  two  hundred  and  fifty 
dollars  for  Minnequa  Maid,  by  Woods'  Hamble- 
tonian, from  a  running-bred  mare.  Minnequa 
Maid,  bred  to  Mambrino  King,  produced  Night- 
ingale (2.08),  and  bred  to  Chimes  produced  Milan 
Chimes  (2.13%),  whose  racing  career  was  ended 
by  his  untimely  death,  and  Chimes  Girl  (2)  (2.26). 
Bred  to  Heir-at-Law  she  produced  Scape  Goat 
(2.nM). 

PURCHASING   A    PREMIER. 

After  cleaning  up  the  odds  and  ends,  although 
Mr.  Hamlin  was  a  very  busy  man,  it  required  very 
little  argument  to  convince  him  that  he  must  have 
some  more  good  mares  and  another  stallion,  for 
at  this  time  he  had  several  Almont  Jr.  mares 
approaching  breeding  age. 

In  the  spring  of  1882  Mr.  Hamlin  sent  me  to 
Kentucky  to  look  at  stallions  and  brood-mares. 
I  was  seeking  a  son  of  George  Wilkes,  for  I  thought 
we  needed  some  of  the  blood,  although  Mr.  Ham- 
lin did  not  like  the  Wilkes  family.  His  objec- 
tions to  the  Wilkeses  were  that  they  bred  un- 
evenly, toed  out  and  were  low  headed.  I  looked 
at  Alcantara,  then  a  six-year-old;  Alcyone,  then 
a  five-year-old,  for  which  Mr.  Hamlin  afterwards 

28 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

offered  twenty  thousand  dollars ;  Onward,  then 
a  seven-year-old ;  and  Red  Wilkes,  then  an  eight- 
year-old.  I  next  visited  Dr.  Herr's  farm  and, 
for  the  first  time,  saw  Mambrino  Patchen  and  his 
ten-year-old  son,  Mambrino  King,  which  horse 
had  been  playing  second  fiddle  to  his  sire.  I 
reported  to  Mr.  Hamlin  that  I  had  never  seen  a 
horse  till  I  saw  Mambrino  King.  I  came  back 
home  with  a  list  of  stallions  and  mares  that  could 
be  purchased. 

In  the  course  of  a  month  Mr.  Hamlin  went  to 
Kentucky  and  purchased  Mambrino  King  for 
seventeen  thousand  dollars;  Gertie  Smith,  by 
Mambrino  Patchen,  for  one  thousand  dollars; 
Play  Girl,  by  Mambrino  Patchen,  for  eight  hun- 
dred dollars ;  Gerster,  by  Hero  of  Thorndale,  foi* 
four  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  at  auction.  Mr. 
Hamlin's  son,  Mr.  William  Hamlin,  purchased 
Goldfringe,  by  Mambrino  King,  for  one  thousand 
dollars.  By  this  time  Mr.  Hamlin  concluded  he* 
had  invested  enough  money  in  trotters  so  he  tel- 
egraphed me  to  come  to  Lexington  and  attend  to 
shipping  his  purchases  home. 

Soon  after  the  purchase  of  Mambrino  King,  Mr. 
Hamlin's  sons  began  to  take  a  great  deal  of  busi- 
ness off  their  father's  shoulders  and  from  that  time 
on  Mr.  Hamlin  made  regular  visits  to  the  farm, 
when  in  Buffalo,  on  Wednesdays  and  Saturdays. 

MORE   PURCHASES. 

In  the  spring  of  1883  Mr.  Hamlin  again  sent 
me  to  Kentucky  to  look  for  a  young  Wilkes  stal- 

29 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

lion  to  cross  on  the  Mambrino  King  fillies  when 
they  came  on. 

Many  of  the  "  knockers  "  had  called  Mambrino 
King  a  "  dude  stallion  "  with  nothing  in  the  2.30 
list.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  on  account  of  standing 
on  the  same  farm  with  his  sire,  he  had  never  had 
a  good  opportunity.  I  was  instructed  while  on 
my  Kentucky  trip  to  look  out  also  for  some  Mam- 
brino King  colts,  which  we  could  develop  for  the 
benefit  of  their  sire. 

After  looking  around  Lexington  I  went  to  the 
farm  of  W.  H.  Wilson,  Cynthiana,  Ky.,  where  I 
found  Simmons,  then  four  years  old.  I  tele- 
graphed Mr.  Hamlin  that  I  had  found  a  stallion  I 
believed  would  suit  him  and  that  I  was  on  the 
track  of  some  Mambrino  King  colts  and  fillies. 
We  met  at  Lexington.  Mr.  Hamlin's  first  pur- 
chase was  Queenie  King,  by  Mambrino  King,  which 
he  purchased  of  Mike  Bowerman  for  seven  hundred 
dollars.  This  was  one  of  Bowerman's  first  high- 
priced  sales.  Queenie  King  afterwards  produced 
The  Queen  (2.10 34)  and  King  Chimes  (2.10%). 
The  next  horse  bought  was  King  Philip  (2.26), 
by  Mambrino  King,  which  Mr.  Hamlin  and  I  pur- 
chased in  partnership  from  Major  P.  P.  John- 
ston, for  twenty-five  hundred  dollars.  At  Dr. 
Herr's  we  had  the  choice  of  Silver  King  (2.26^), 
aged  two  years,  and  Elyria,  a  yearling,  for  twenty- 
five  hundred  dollars.  We  chose  the  former  be- 
cause Elyria  was  smaller  and  a  little  double-gaited. 
We  then  went  to  Cynthiana  and  offered  seventy- 
five  hundred  for  Simmons,  but  as  Mr.  Wilson 

30 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

would  not  sell  for  less  than  ten  thousand  dollars 
we  returned  without  the  horse. 

ESTABELLA. 

In  the  fall  of  1884  Mr.  Hamlin  went  to  Stony 
Ford  Farm,  Charles  Backman,  proprietor,  and 
purchased  Feroline,  by  Kentucky  Prince,  for  five 
thousand  dollars;  Barbara,  by  Kentucky  Prince, 
for  two  thousand  dollars ;  and  Marjorie,  by  Ken- 
tucky Prince,  for  twenty-five  hundred  dollars. 
Estabella,  by  Alcantara,  owned  by  David  Bonner, 
was  on  the  same  farm.  She  was  then  a  little, 
low-down,  squatty  three-year-old  filly,  but  we 
purchased  her  for  one  thousand  dollars.  Fero- 
line produced  the  dam  of  Lord  March  (2.nJ^). 
Estabella  produced  Heir-at-Law  (2.05%);  Prince 
Regent  (2.16^),  for  whom  Charles  Marvin  once 
offered  fifty  thousand  dollars ;  Princess  Royal  (2) 
(2.20),  dam  of  The  Earl  (3)  (2.17),  and  Princess 
Chimes,  the  dam  of  Lady  of  the  Manor  (2.04^), 
etc.  A  prominent  breeder  once  offered  twenty- 
five  thousand  dollars  for  either  of  two  fillies 
by  Chimes,  from  Estabella.  Barbara  produced 
Emily  (2.11). 

Mr.  Hamlin  was  a  good  judge  of  a  horse  and  an 
excellent  buyer.  On  the  other  hand  he  was  a 
poor  seller.  Often  after  he  had  refused  a  good 
offer  for  a  colt  I  have  induced  the  would-be  pur- 
chaser to  return  to  the  farm  in  Mr.  Hamlin's 
absence  and  would  effect  a  sale.  I  remember  one 
occasion  in  particular  when  he  refused  an  offer  of 
twenty-five  thousand  dollars  for  four  fillies  and  a 

31 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

stud  colt.     He  hated  to  sell  his  best,   in  fact, 
advised  strongly  against  it. 

Mr.  Hamlin's  first  stallion  was  Hamlin  Patchen, 
which  he  bred,  as  previously  mentioned. 

ALMONT  JR. 

He  bought  Almont  Jr.  (2.26)  as  a  four-year-old 
in  1876,  paying  Mr.  William  Payne  of  Scott 
County,  Ky.,  twenty-five  hundred  dollars  for 
him.  He  kept  Almont  Jr.  until  1891,  when  he 
was  leased  two  seasons  to  Mr.  William  C.  Dickin- 
son of  the  Connecticut  River  Stock  Farm,  Hat- 
field,  Mass.  Mr.  Dickinson  had  bred  a  number 
of  mares  at  Village  Farm,  and  purchased  Elect- 
mont,  that  has  since  sired  Lady  Sealskin  (2.06^) 
and  others,  for  twenty-five  hundred  dollars. 

In  1893  Almont  Jr.  was  back  at  Village  Farm. 
In  1900  he  was  leased  to  Stillman  M.  Thomas  of 
Franklinville,  N.  Y.,  for  four  seasons.  In  1904 
he  was  returned  to  Village  Farm.  He  was  then 
thirty-two  years  old  but  vigorous  and  was  allowed 
to  cover  a  coach  mare,  which  he  got  with  foal. 
As  his  teeth  were  decaying  rapidly  the  horse  was 
chloroformed. 

MAMBRINO   KING. 

The  purchase  of  Mambrino  King  was  spoken  of 
in  connection  with  the  brood-mare  purchases. 

Mr.  Hamlin  thought  so  much  of  Mambrino 
King  that  he  always  "  spread  "  on  him  in  his 
catalogues.  The  following  is  what  he  said  of  the 
horse  in  his  first  catalogue,  that  of  1884  : 

32 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 


"  Mambrino  King  stands  15.3  hands,  and  he  is 
universally  conceded  to  be  what  the  French  Com- 
missioners pronounced  him,  '  The  handsomest 
horse  in  the  world.'  He  combines  strength,  intel- 
ligence, courage,  faultless  action  and  good  breed- 
ing with  symmetry  and  style.  His  second  dam 
was  the  dam  of  Fisk's  Mambrino  Chief,  a  horse 
that  sold  for  twelve  thousand  dollars.  His  legs 
are  stoutly  corded  and  free  from  blemish,  and  his 
feet  are  entirely  sound.  He  has  no  imperfections 
to  transmit  and,  judging  him  by  his  stud  fruits, 
he  has  the  power  to  stamp  out  defects  in  the  dam. 

"  He  has  never  been  put  in  trotting  condition, 
but  has  often  been  driven  by  Dr.  Herr  and  his 
colored  groom  quarters  in  thirty-four  and  thirty- 
five  seconds  and  thirty-five  and  a  fraction,  in  the 
presence  of  David  Bonner  and  hundreds  of  others. 
In  the  fall  of  1881  he  showed  in  an  exhibition  trot 
at  the  Lexington  Fair,  when  he  was  speeded,  a 
half-mile  in  1.14 ;  jogged  to  the  half-mile  pole  and 
repeated  in  just  exactly  the  same  time,  without 
making  a  break  or  the  least  urging,  and  this  after 
the  regular  season  in  the  stud.  He  wears  light 
shoes  and  no  toe- weights.  Dr.  Herr  writes  me 
that  the  colts  left  in  Kentucky  by  him  are  coming 
to  the  front  as  trotters,  and  he  predicts  that  in 
three  years  from  now  Mambrino  King  will  stand 
at  the  head  of  all  trotting  stallions.  He  has  a  rich 
speed  inheritance,  and  this  he  can  hardly  fail  to 
perpetuate.  I  paid  a  large  price  for  him,  and 
during  the  short  period  he  has  been  located  at 

33 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

Village  Farm  not  less  than  sixteen  thousand 
people  have  called  to  see  and  admire  him.*  I 
believe  in  breeding  a  class  of  horses  which  possess 
beauty  and  style  as  well  as  speed,  and  am  satis- 
fied that  I  will  accomplish  my  purpose  by  using 
Mambrino  King  in  the  stud.  I  reproduce  in  this 
connection  a  description  of  the  horse,  written  by 
the  well-known  S.  T.  H.,  of  Cincinnati : 

"  '  His  rich,  satin-like  coat  glistening  in  the 
sunlight,  more  handsome  in  his  exquisite  pro- 
portions and  lofty  in  his  splendid  carriage  than 
the  proudest  Nedjed  Arabian  of  the  desert.  In- 
deed, as  he  stood  before  us,  his  eyes  flashing  and 
his  gazelle  ears  pointing  forward,  and  his  arching 
neck  revealing  the  delicate  network  of  swelling 
veins,  and  his  symmetrical  barrel  revealing  every 
contour  of  equine  beauty,  and  his  full,  flowing 
tail,  gracefully  floating  like  a  gossamer  banner, 
we  thought  that  if  he  could  be  instantly  trans- 
formed into  marble  he  would  remain  forever  the 
sculptor's  model  of  an  ideal  horse.' 

"  I  also  call  attention  to  the  following  extract 
from  the  official  report  of  Baron  Favorot  de  Ker- 
beck,  French  Colonel  of  Dragoons,  who  was  de- 
puted by  his  government  to  make  an  extensive 
tour  of  inspection  of  the  horses  of  America  : 

"  '  Mambrino  King  is  the  most  splendid  speci- 
men we  have  had  an  opportunity  of  admiring. 
Imagine  an  Alfred  de  Dreux,  a  burnt  chestnut, 
whole  colored,  standing  15.3  hands,  with  an  ex- 

*I  recall  one  day  when  Mambrino  King  was  taken  out  of  his  stall  to  be 
shown  to  visitors  one  hundred  and  seventy  times.  John  Bradburn. 

34 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

pressive  head ;  large,  intelligent  and  spirited  eyes ; 
well-opened  lower  jaws,  well-set  ears ;  the  neck 
and  shoulders  splendidly  shaped,  long  and  grace- 
fully rounded  off ;  the  shoulders  strong  and  thrown 
back  well ;  the  withers  well  in  place  and  top  mus- 
cular, the  ribs  round  and  loin  superb,  the  crupper 
long  and  broad ;  limbs  exceedingly  fine,  the  joints 
powerful ;  the  tail  carried  majestically  and  all  the 
movements  high  and  spirited — imagine  all  this 
and  you  have  an  idea  of  this  stallion.  He  is  as 
open,  if  we  look  at  him  in  front,  as  he  is  in  his 
hind  quarters — the  whole  animal  being  an  em- 
bodiment of  purity  of  lines,  elegance  and  elas- 
ticity. He  is,  in  fact,  perfection/  ' 

Later,  Mr.  Hamlin  added  this  paragraph  to  his 
description  of  the  horse  : 

"  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  until  he  was 
ten  years  of  age  Mambrino  King  was  owned  by 
Dr.  Herr,  and  being  so  overshadowed  in  reputa- 
tion as  a  stock  horse  by  his  famous  sire,  Mam- 
brino Patchen,  he  had  few  or  no  opportunities  of 
serving  mares  of  the  best  breeding.  The  natural 
speed  and  great  beauty  of  the  fillies  which  I  have 
seen  that  were  sired  by  him  when  he  was  in  Ken- 
tucky, and  the  same  qualities  in  those  which  he 
has  sired  since  he  came  to  Village  Farm,  together 
with  the  fact  that  Mambrino  King  is  far  more 
beautiful  and  more  richly  bred  than  Mambrino 
Patchen,  warrant  me  in  making  the  prediction 
that  his  daughters  will  be  superior  as  brood-mares 
to  those  of  his  sire,  which  have  proven  them- 
selves the  most  valuable  of  any  in  the  country. 

35 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

In  this  opinion  I  am  fully  sustained  by  the 
judgment  of  Dr.  Herr." 

Without  special  preparation  Horace  Brown 
once  drove  Mambrino  King  a  public  exhibition 
half-mile,  at  Buffalo,  in  1.12,  with  the  horse  in 
stud  condition. 

Mambrino  King  was  still  vigorous  at  twenty- 
seven  years  but  his  teeth  were  decaying  and  he 
had  a  painful  injury  on  the  knee,  due  to  the  kick 
of  a  mare,  and  he  was  chloroformed. 


CHIMES. 

When  the  Mambrino  King  fillies  came  on  it 
was  necessary  to  select  a  stallion  to  cross  on  them. 
Usually  Mr.  Hamlin  would  buy  for  Village  Farm 
anything  I  advised.  Effecting  the  purchase  of 
Chimes  was  the  hardest  proposition  I  ever  ran  up 
against.  I  had  first  seen  Chimes  at  Rochester, 
N.  Y.,  as  a  yearling  in  the  fall  of  1885.  I  was 
working  out  a  mare  that  could  step  around  2.32. 
Charlie  Marvin  was  out  behind  Chimes  and  asked 
me  how  fast  I  was  going.  I  replied,  "  Around 
2.40,  with  the  last  half  in  twelve."  "  I'll  work 
with  you,"  he  said.  Horace  Brown  was  out 
behind  a  mare  and  the  three  of  us  worked  to- 
gether, giving  the  colt  the  pole.  Chimes  kept  the 
mares  busy  to  the  half,  while  Marvin  was  buggy 
riding.  At  the  head  of  the  stretch  the  two  mares 
were  on  their  toes,  while  Marvin  commenced 
moving  away.  Chimes  was  soon  so  far  in  the  lead 
that  I  was  ashamed  to  finish  the  mile  and,  pulling 

36 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

my  mare  up,  I  turned  around  and  went  back  to 
the  stable. 

I  talked  Chimes  all  winter.  He  was  a  rapid- 
going  colt  and  would,  I  thought,  mate  well  with 
the  Mambrino  Kings,  which  did  not  have  enough 
knee  action  and  were  long  striders.  Mr.  Hamlin 
saw  Chimes  that  fall  at  the  St.  Louis  Fair  but  was 
not  greatly  impressed,  because  the  colt  went  low 
headed  and  did  not  carry  his  tail  as  Mr.  Hamlin 
liked  to  see  a  horse  do.  In  1886,  while  at  Sagi- 
naw,  Mich.,  Mr.  Hamlin  promised  to  make  an 
offer  for  Chimes.  He  asked  Marvin  what  the  colt 
could  be  bought  for.  Marvin  replied,  "  He  is  the 
best  colt  we  ever  raised  and  I  do  not  care  to  price 
him.  However,  I  will  telegraph  any  fair  offer 
you  may  make  to  Governor  Stanford. "  Stanford 
was  at  that  time  in  the  Senate  at  Washington. 
Mr.  Hamlin  offered  ten  thousand  dollars  for  the 
colt.  Marvin  said  he  did  not  like  to  telegraph  so 
low  an  offer.  Mr.  Hamlin  then  offered  twelve 
thousand  dollars  and  Marvin  telegraphed  his 
employer  to  that  effect.  Governor  Stanford's 
answer  was  that  if  the  colt  was  going  to  a  good 
home  and  the  sale  was  for  cash,  to  sell.  That  was 
how  Chimes  came  into  the  possession  of  Mr. 
Hamlin. 

We  worked  Chimes  a  mile  in  2.25  as  a  two-year- 
old.  In  the  spring  of  1887,  as  a  three-year-old, 
we  bred  him  to  sixteen  mares  and  raced  him  that 
summer.  He  won  nine  thousand  dollars  and  took 
a  record  of  2.30%,  which  was  no  measure  of  his 
speed.  Marvin,  in  his  book,  tells  of  driving 

37 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

Chimes  a  quarter  in  thirty-five  seconds  at  fifteen 
months.  Chimes  was  very  successful  in  the  stud, 
financially  and  otherwise.  One  year  he  made 
twenty-one  thousand  dollars  for  Village  Farm, 
covering  forty-two  outside  mares  at  five  hundred 
dollars. 

GOLDEN    GATEWAY. 

Golden  Gateway,  by  Guy  Wilkes  (2.15^),  was 
purchased  at  auction  in  1889,  when  he  was  ten 
months  old,  for  fifty-one  hundred  dollars.  He 
was  believed  to  be  the  first  colt  with  three  pro- 
ducing dams. 

REX   AMERICUS. 

Rex  Americus  (2.1 1 J4)  was  purchased,  as  a  two- 
year-old,  from  J.  H.  Thayer,  for  fifteen  thousand 
dollars.  He  made  a  season  as  a  three-year-old, 
producing  Battleton  (2.09%)  and  American  Belle 
(2.12^)  from  these  services. 

ATHANIO. 

In  1895  Mr.  Hamlin  and  Mr.  Geers  purchased 
Athanio  (2)  (2.19^),  from  George  L.  Warton, 
Fresno,  Cat,  for  twelve  hundred  dollars.  After 
taking  a  record  of  2.10  he  was  sold  at  auction  for 
three  thousand  seven  hundred  and  fifty  dollars 
and  went  to  Austria. 

DIRECT  HAL. 

The  last  stallion  Mr.  Hamlin  purchased,  and 
the  only  pacing  stallion,  was  Direct  Hal,  owned 

38 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

by  Mr.  Ed.  Geers.  I  saw  Direct  Hal  first  as  a 
two-year-old  and  liked  him.  At  that  time  we  had 
about  gone  the  limit  on  the  Mambrino  King- 
Chimes  cross  and  needed  an  out  cross.  As  some 
of  our  mares  produced  fast  pacers  I  thought 
Direct  Hal  would  make  a  good  cross  and  advised 
Mr.  Hamlin  to  breed  some  mares  to  him.  To 
this  suggestion  he  replied,  "  If  I  want  the  use  of 
a  stallion  I  can  afford  to  own  him.  What  do  you 
suppose  people  would  say  if  I  bred  to  an  outside 
stallion?  I  don't  want  to  dig  my  own  grave. 
Let  some  one  else  do  that."  It  was  some  time 
before  Mr.  Hamlin  could  induce  Mr.  Geers  to  sell, 
but  the  horse  finally  changed  hands  for  ten  thou- 
sand dollars.  At  that  time  his  fastest  mile  had 
been  in  2.17}^  with  a  half  in  1.06.  We  bred  him 
as  a  four-year-old  and  five-year-old,  and  in  the 
latter  year  he  worked  a  mile  in  2.06 %•  As  a  six- 
year-old  he  was  raced.  He  was  unbeaten  down 
the  Grand  Circuit  and  took  a  record  of  2.0414, 
winning  twenty-six  thousand  five  hundred  dollars. 
At  one  time  Direct  Hal  could  have  been  sold 
for  forty  thousand  dollars. 

THE    FIRST    CATALOGUE. 

The  Village  Farm  catalogues  record  many  of 
Mr.  Hamlin's  views  on  the  breeding  problem. 

The  first  catalogue  of  Village  Farm  was  issued 
in  1884.  It  was  my  first  experience  as  a  catalogue 
compiler  and  I  never  worked  so  hard  on  anything 
in  my  life.  At  that  time  the  facilities  for  com- 
piling catalogues  were  not  what  they  now  are  and 

39 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

the  tracing  of  pedigrees  and  establishing  of  dates 
was  a  tedious  undertaking. 

In  the  announcement  of  the  1884  catalogue 
Mr.  Hamlin  briefly  outlined  his  "  theory  of  breed- 
ing," as  he  called  it,  in  these  words  : 

MR.  HAMLIN'S  THEORY  OF  BREEDING. 

"  My  great  aim  in  breeding  is  to  combine  speed 
with  size,  soundness,  style  and  elegance  of  form. 
In  the  pursuit  of  this  object  I  have  weeded  from 
the  list  the  mares  which  have  not  produced  foals 
up  to  the  standard,  and  the  stallions  have  been 
selected  with  the  greatest  care." 

Speaking  of  weeding  out  I  might  mention  that 
a  great  deal  of  it  was  done  at  Village  Farm.  If  a 
stallion  colt  was  not  up  to  the  standard  he  was 
gelded.  If  a  colt  came  crooked  we  knew  it  was 
the  mare's  fault.  The  colt  was  killed  and  the 
mare  sold. 

Speaking  of  these  brood-mares  Mr.  Hamlin,  in 
his  1884  catalogue,  published  the  following 
opinion  : 

THE  BROOD-MARE'S  IMPORTANCE. 

"  The  brood-mares  cover  every  branch  of  the 
explored  field.  Every  line  of  demonstrated  worth 
has  been  given  a  place  in  the  collection.  As  I 
wish  to  stamp  out,  instead  of  to  perpetuate,  in- 
firmities, no  mare  has  been  purchased  or  retained, 
regardless  of  fashionable  breeding,  which  has  a 
blemish  of  a  constitutional  character.  I  believe 
that  the  brood-mare  is  an  important  factor  in  the 

40 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

problem  of  reproduction,  and  so  I  have  given  as 
much  thought  to  her  selection  as  to  that  of  the 
stallion. 

"  I  do  not  see  how  I  can  fail,  by  grafting  the 
best  qualities  of  one  family  upon  the  best  qualities 
of  another  family,  to  produce  a  superior  breed  of 
horses.  I  believe  in  giving  to  the  foal  t Incapacity 
to  trot  young,  but  I  am  opposed  to  the  abuse  of 
this  capacity.  I  shall  not,  as  a  rule,  impose  a 
strain  upon  the  colts  which  the  joints  and  liga- 
ments are  in  no  condition  to  sustain,  therefore 
few  reports  of  fast  trials  of  yearlings  and  two- 
year-olds  will  go  out  from  Village  Farm.  The 
man  who  waits  upon  a  colt  until  it  matures  will 
have  the  satisfaction  of  owning  an  animal  able  to 
stand  the  wear  and  tear  of  the  road  and  track." 


BEAUTY    AND    SPEED. 

Mr.  Hamlin  was  continually  preaching,  through 
his  catalogues  and  the  public  prints,  his  doctrine 
of  combining  beauty  and  speed.  In  his  1885 
catalogue  he  says  : 

1  The  get  of  a  very  large  percentage  of  the  plain 
trotting  stallions  now  in  use  in  this  country  have 
no  speed,  and,  being  without  beauty  or  other 
attractive  qualities,  can  be  marketed  only  for 
street  railroad  and  other  ordinary  purposes  at 
prices  that  do  not  pay  the  breeder  one-half  what 
it  costs  to  raise  them.  This  is  the  cause  of  a  great 
number  of  breeders  becoming  disgusted  with  the 
business," 

41 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

In  the  1891  catalogue  he  had  more  to  say  on  the 
same  subject : 

"  I  wish  briefly  to  direct  attention  to  a  few 
points  which,  in  my  judgment,  are  of  the  greatest 
moment  to  the  breeding  world.  The  crowning 
ambition  of  every  breeder  is  to  produce  a  perfect 
horse,  but  it  is  evident  to  careful  observers  that 
much  must  be  accomplished  before  the  hope  is 
realized.  Progress  is  not  dead,  but  some  breeders 
are  more  progressive  than  others.  The  cardinal 
points  in  the  make-up  of  a  perfect  horse  are 
beauty,  size,  strength,  endurance,  intelligence, 
speed  and  balance.  The  absence  of  any  of  these 
points  would  cause  the  animal  to  fall  short  of  the 
standard  of  perfection." 

DEVELOPED    SIRES. 

About  this  time  Mr.  Hamlin  became  convinced 
that  hard-racing  campaigns  sap  the  vitality  of  a 
stallion  and  make  him  undesirable  for  a  stock 
horse.  These  views,  when  they  appeared  in  the 
Turf,  Field  and  Farm,  were  widely  criticised. 
He  continued  the  controversy  in  his  1888  cata- 
logue in  which  he  says  : 

* '  All  breeders  are  more  or  less  rivals,  each  being 
anxious  to  excel  the  other.  This  being  the  case, 
I  feel  privileged  to  say  a  few  words  about  the 
claims  put  forward  by  the  owners  of  other  stal- 
lions, especially  those  stallions  with  fast  records. 
I  combat  the  theory  that  stallions  with  low  records 
are  of  the  highest  value  for  breeding  purposes.  I 
contend  that  the  fastest  and  gamest  performers 

4.2 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

are  not  likely  to  come  from  them.  It  is  beyond 
dispute  that  a  horse  which  trots  race  after  race 
passes  through  a  vitality-sapping  ordeal.  The 
stallion  that  is  trained,  season  after  season,  for 
the  purpose  of  forcing  him  down  to  the  lowest 
record  made,  goes  through  a  continual  strain  which 
necessarily  takes  from  him  something  of  the  vigor 
so  important  to  the  highest  results  in  the  stud. 
The  hard  work  of  the  track  causes  a  waste  of  the 
vital  force,  so  much  needed  in  perfect  stock-get- 
ting. I  believe  that  the  stallion  which  is  over- 
worked for  the  sake  of  a  record  has  his  ability  for 
reproducing  speed  weakened  instead  of  increased, 
and  to  show  my  sincerity  on  this  point,  to  prove 
my  faith  by  my  words,  I  offer  the  following  chal- 
lenge : 

A    CHALLENGE. 

"  I  will  trot  this  coming  season  heats,  best  two 
in  three,  tinder  the  rules  of  the  National  Trotting 
Association,  over  any  good  mile  track,  as  con- 
venient to  reach  by  both  parties  as  possible,  four 
of  the  get  of  Mambrino  King  (an  undeveloped 
stallion),  foaled  in  1885,  bred,  raised,  devel- 
oped and  owned  at  Village  Farm,  against  any 
four  of  the  same  age,  bred,  raised,  developed  and 
owned  by  the  owner  of  any  stallion  having  a 
record  of  2.22  or  better,  the  said  four  to  have  been 
sired  after  the  stallion  had  obtained  his  fastest 
record.  I  will  make  each  of  the  four  races  for 
from  one  to  one  thousand  dollars  a  side,  and  I  would 
prefer  that  the  challenge  be  accepted  by  the  owner 

43 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

of  Phallas  (2.13%),  or  the  owner  of  Jerome  Eddy 
(2.16^2).  Both  of  the  stallions  named  are  fast, 
but  up  to  the  present  time  I  have  been  unable  to 
discover  that  either  has  sired  a  trotter.  I  am 
willing,  however,  to  go  on  a  voyage  of  discovery, 
and  my  proposition  cannot  be  deemed  one-sided, 
for  the  reason  that  both  stallions  have  a  large 
number  of  colts  of  the  proper  age  from  which 
their  owners,  who  employ  first-class  trainers,  can 
make  selections.  If  the  theory  is  sound  that  a 
horse  which  has  trotted  a  wonderfully  fast  mile 
should  necessarily  get  very  fast  stock,  the  advan- 
tage should  be  with  Phallas  and  Jerome  Eddy, 
because  they  have  the  fastest  records  and  have 
been  serving  mares  for  several  years  past  at  high 
prices.  For  the  good  of  the  trotting  community, 
as  well  as  for  those  breeding  with  the  hope  of 
getting  a  trotter,  I  think  it  time  that  the  bubble, 
so  full  of  deceptive  ideas,  should  be  pricked." 

How  this  challenge  was  received  is  best  told 
by  Mr.  Hamlin  himself  in  his  1889  catalogue  : 

"  This  direct  and  business-like  proposition 
stirred  up  a  series  of  cyclones  throughout  the 
country,  and  although  many  counter-proposi- 
tions were  made  by  the  owners  of  developed  stal- 
lions, not  one  of  these  had  the  courage  to  accept 
my  challenge.  The  four  three-year-olds  by  Mam- 
brino  King,  upon  which  I  depended,  did  not  dis- 
appoint me.  Every  one  showed  the  ability  to 
trot  in  from  2.25  to  2.35.  One  trotted  a  trial  in 
2.26,  and  the  other  two  trotted  in  2.31.  Mam- 
brino  King  is  all  I  have  claimed  him  to  be." 

44 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

SELECTING    BROOD-MARES. 

Mr.  Hamlin  was  not  only  a  non-believer  in  tin- 
cup  records,  but  did  not  consider  it  necessary  to 
race  a  mare  in  order  to  make  a  successful  brood- 
mare. He  thought  nothing  of  stopping  us  work- 
ing our  best  fillies  and  ordering  them  to  be  placed 
in  the  harem.  For  that  reason  most  of  Village 
Farm's  fastest  performers  were  stallions  or  geld- 
ings. 

On  many  an  occasion  have  the  Village  Farm 
trainers  been  actually  sickened  when  prospective 
2.10  trotters  were  taken  from  their  strings  to  be 
placed  in  the  brood-mare  ranks. 

A    PREDICTION. 

Mr.  Hamlin  took  great  pleasure  in  making  pre- 
dictions in  his  catalogues,  almost  all  of  which 
were  fulfilled.  The  most  important  one  appeared 
in  his  catalogue  for  1891  : 

''While  it  is  dangerous  to  make  predictions,  and 
while  I  realize  that  the  whole  world  is  in  compe- 
tition, I  wish  it  recorded  that  there  are  now  on 
Village  Farm  a  number  of  youngsters  that  will 
score  lower  marks  in  contested  races  than  have 
heretofore  been  made  by  any  trotter,  living  or 
dead." 

Several  world's  champions  afterwards  appeared 
to  fulfil  this  prediction. 

"  THE    PASSING    OF    VILLAGE    FARM." 

Before  leaving  Village  Farm  to  take  up  the 
practical  side  of  this  book,  I  wish  to  call  atten- 

45 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

tion  to  what  I  consider  the  best  eulogy  written 
on  this  famous  establishment.  It  was  penned 
by  Rev.  Andrew  M.  Shea,  of  Ames,  la.,  one  of  our 
patrons,  and  was  published,  I  think,  in  the  Spirit 
of  the  West,  of  Des  Moines,  la.,  but  is  deserving  of 
a  wider  circulation.  I  am  sorry  there  is  not  space 
here  to  print  the  entire  article,  excerpts  from 
which  follow  : 

"  Life  is  full  of  pathos.  Change  and  decay 
characterize  our  journey  between  birth  and  judg- 
ment. In  obedience  to  this  principle  everything 
advances,  either  in  an  increasing  or  a  decreasing 
series.  The  solid  granite  gradually  crumbles  into 
dust ;  the  tall  oak  of  the  forest  is  first  a  tender 
shoot,  then  a  green  sapling,  until,  ultimately,  it  is 
succeeded  by  decay.  So  with  the  institutions  of 
man — they  are  first  seen  in  the  tenderness  of  in- 
fancy, then  in  the  beauty  of  youth,  then  in  the 
strength  of  maturity,  till  age  steals  on  apace, 
impairing  their  beauty,  wasting  their  freshness 
and  destroying  their  strength,  till,  bowing  under 
the  weight  of  infirmities  or  ceasing  to  be  among 
men,  their  day  has  become  night  and  their  mis- 
sion history.  The  experiences  and  enterprises 
of  Leland  Stanford,  Robert  Bonner  and  J.  Mal- 
colm Forbes  constitute  personal  illustrations  of 
this  transitory  life.  And  now  comes  the  announce- 
ment of  the  absolute  dispersal  of  Village 
Farm,  and  though  Mr.  Cicero  J.  Hamlin,  its  dis- 
tinguished founder,  at  least  as  great,  if  not  indeed 
the  greatest  Roman  of  them  all,  still  lingers  this 
side  of  the  portals  of  the  grave,  it  is  appar- 

46 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

ent  to  his  friends  and  to  none  more  so  than  the 
great  horseman  himself  that  he  too  must  soon 
join  his  colleagues  in  the  invisible  land,  and  herein, 
perhaps,  more  than  anything  else,  lies  the  secret  of 
'  The  Passing  of  Village  Farm.'* 

"  And  what  a  farm  it  has  been!  What  history 
it  has  made!  How  vastly  different  the  records 
of  the  turf  would  read  had  Village  Farm  never 
had  an  existence!  The  list  of  men  who  have 
mixed  brains  with  the  founding  of  a  stock  farm 
and  have  carried  the  enterprise  to  successful  con- 
summation, at  least  in  the  degree,  as  has  Mr. 
Hamlin,  is  not  large.  Few  men  are  entitled  to 
start  in  his  class.  His  judgment  in  selecting  and 
handling  Mambrino  King  and  Chimes  has  been 
vindicated  by  their  achievements.  .  .  . 

"  In  the  spring  of  1903  the  writer  bade  adieu 
to  the  dear  ones  of  his  Western  home,  climbed  into 
a  box  car  with  our  three-year-old  filly,  whose 
blood  lines  read  like  a  poem  and  whose  ancestors 
have  distinguished  themselves  in  the  stud  and 
on  the  track,  and  sped  away  to  Village  Farm. 
After  the  varied  experiences  incident  to  travel 
by  freight  we  reached  East  Aurora,  N.  Y.  We 
went  to  the  depot  'phone  and  called  up  Village 
Farm,  from  which  came  the  courteous  reply,  '  We 
will  send  for  you  and  your  mare  immediately.' 
In  due  time  came  a  man  on  horseback  for  the  idol 
of  our  heart  and  the  foundation  of  our  dreams — 
dreams  of  a  colt,  a  sale  at  a  long  price,  and  a  trip 
to  the  Holy  Land.  Just  behind  him  rode  another 

*Mr.  Hamlin  died  February  20,   1905,   scarcely  three  weeks  after  the 
Village  Farm  dispersal  sale. 

47 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

behind  an  attractive-looking  pacer  hitched  to  a 
top  buggy.  We  were  invited  to  a  seat  behind  the 
pacer  and  in  response  to  our  inquiry,  '  What's 
this  you  are  driving?'  the  driver  smiled  and  said, 
'  You  are  now  riding  behind  Hal  Pointer.'  Con- 
fess, yes ;  we  can  but  be  true.  Our  first  impulse 
was  to  tip  our  hat  and  then  get  out  and  walk. 
Shades  of  the  great  ones!  Had  we  not  read  and 
re-read  the  Hal  Pointer-Direct  duels?  Had 
not  our  heart  beat  fast  as  the  dailies  told  of  his 
demonstrating  to  the  world  that  a  horse  could 
pace  in  less  than  2.05?  Had  we  not  said,  '  I  wish 
I  could  see  him  '  ?  And  behold,  we  were  actually 
riding  behind  him.  And  notwithstanding  Mr. 
Bradburn's  most  cordial  welcome  and  the  fact 
that  we  had  had  nothing  warm  to  eat  for  four  days, 
we  actually  stood  on  the  office  porch  until  the  old 
hero  had  entered  the  barn.  .  .  .  Like  the  Queen 
of  Sheba,  who  had  heard  the  glories  of  Solomon, 
we,  too,  had  heard  of  the  greatness  of  Village 
Farm,  but  we  confess  in  the  language  of  the 
ancient  queen,  '  The  half  had  not  been  told.'  .  .  . 
However,  as  we  are  writing  about  the  passing  of 
things,  we  pause  to  note  that  it  was  here  The 
Abbot  struggled  to  get  command  of  himself  and, 
after  succeeding,  flew  to  the  top  and  carried  the 
world's  record — a  coveted  crown — to  the  camp  of 
his  owner.  But  where  is  he?  Gone!  Passed  for- 
ever! From  this  spot,  a  few  days  ago,  we  looked 
away  to  the  hillside  where  rest  the  bones  of  old 
Hal  Pointer.  How  are  the  mighty  fallen,  and  now 
the  entire  plant  is  to  become  a  thing  of  the  past." 

48 


Chapter  Three 
FOUNDING  A  STOCK  FARM 

Location. —  Soil. —  Water. —  Size  of  Farm. —  Acres  of 
Land  per  Head. —  The  Track. —  Rules  for  Laying  out  Track. 
—  The  Cinder  Track. —  Paddocks. —  Fencing. —  Stables. — 
Main  Barn. —  Water  in  Paddock. —  Brood-mare  Shed. —  The 
Farm  Superintendent. 

AT  this  point  I  will  take  it  for  granted  that 
I  have  satisfactorily  explained  to  the  reader 
who  I  am,  have  told  as  much  of  my  history 
as  he  will  be  interested  in  knowing,   have  shown 
how  my  knowledge  of  horses   was   gained,  and 
have  described  how  that  experience  was  applied 
to  the  management  of  Village  Farm. 

With  this  in  mind,  I  will  presume  to  write 
several  chapters  of  advice  on  the  breeding  and 
development  of  trotters,  with  advice  on  the  man- 
agement of  stock  farms.  I  propose  to  begin  at 
the  very  beginning  and  will  devote  this  chapter 
to  the  founding  of  a  stock  farm. 

LOCATION. 

We  will  suppose  that  the  reader  contemplates 
starting  in  the  breeding  business  and  has  come 
to  that  point  where  he  must  decide  on  the  loca- 
tion of  his  stock  farm,  be  it  large  or  small. 

Those  who  are  expecting  a  long-winded  argu- 
ment on  the  climatic  theory  will  be  disappointed. 

49 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

In  my  opinion  the  main  thing  to  be  considered  is 
to  locate  the  farm  within  easy  access  of  its  owner's 
place  of  business.  If  the  owner  lives  in  a  large 
city  his  farm  should  be  at  some  point  not  farther 
away  than  thirty  or  forty  minutes'  ride  by  rail. 
The  farm  should  be  so  located  that  the  owner  can 
visit  it  often  and  at  all  seasons  without  tedious 
journeys,  otherwise  he  is  liable  to  lose  interest 
and  quit  the  business. 

The  nearer  the  farm  is  to  the  railroad  station 
the  better,  and  the  less  expense  the  owner  is  put 
to  in  hauling  supplies.  This  is  an  important 
factor.  For  every  mile  the  cost  of  hauling  in- 
creases expenses  hundreds  of  dollars,  according 
to  the  size  of  the  plant,  and  this  soon  runs  into 
thousands. 

The  farm  that  is  within  ten  or  fifteen  minutes' 
walk  of  the  depot  is  admirably  located.  The 
owner,  his  friends,  or  visitors,  can  reach  such  a 
farm  without  a  tiresome  drive.  Too  many  of  our 
large  stock  farms  are  almost  inaccessible. 

\ 

SOIL. 

In  locating  a  stock  farm  at  any  particular 
point,  if  there  is  any  choice  of  soil  I  would  pre- 
fer it  to  be  sandy  or  gravelly.  The  muddy  season 
will  be  shorter  and  the  grass  will  come  earlier  and 
stay  later.  Rolling,  but  not  hilly,  land  has  my 
preference. 

WATER. 
If  possible  there  should  be  spring  water  on  the 

5° 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

farm.  It  is  the  best  water  for  man  or  beast  to 
drink,  and  for  both  is  the  most  pleasant  and 
healthful. 

SIZE    OF    FARM. 

Now  as  to  the  size  of  the  farm,  that  will  depend 
on  the  amount  of  stock.  If  I  were  a  millionaire 
I  would  never  want  over  forty  brood-mares  and 
would  prefer  twenty.  Twenty  brood-mares  will 
raise  enough  colts  to  keep  a  trainer  busy.  If  you 
start  on  twenty  mares,  by  the  time  your  oldest 
foals  are  four  years  old  you  should  have  sixty- 
eight  or  seventy  colts  to  keep  your  trainers 
occupied. 

After  deciding  on  the  number  of  brood-mares 
you  wish  to  start  with  it  will  become  necessary 
to  determine  how  many  acres  of  land  will  be 
required  to  support  each  mare. 

ACRES  OF  LAND  PER  HEAD. 

In  New  York  State  your  mare  will  live  on  grass 
for  about  six  months.  Two  acres  of  pasturage 
should  keep  her,  and  colt  by  side,  for  the  season. 

During  the  winter  months  she  will  eat  about 
fifteen  pounds  of  hay  per  day,  for  six  months,  or 
about  twenty-seven  hundred  pounds  in  all.  In 
New  York  State  one  acre  of  land  will  raise  this 
much  hay  or  more  each  season. 

If  you  wish  to  raise  your  own  oats,  you  will  have 
to  allow  the  mare  more  ground.  During  the  six 
winter  months  she  will  be  fed  about  six  quarts  of 
oats  a  day  (in  addition  to  bran,  wheat,  etc.,  as  set 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

forth  in  chapter  five),  or  about  thirty-five  bushels 
for  the  season.  This  will  require,  in  New  York 
State,  seven-tenths  of  an  acre  of  land. 

The  straw  from  this  land  will  provide  enough 
bedding  for  your  mare  during  the  winter  if  your 
men  are  not  wasteful. 

Sooner  or  later  the  colts  will  come  on  and  you 
will  need  more  land.  We  will  suppose  that  you 
keep  all  the  colts  until  they  are  two  years  old. 
This  will  give  you  the  pleasure  of  breaking  and 
driving  them  and  developing  their  speed  if  they 
have  any.  In  the  long  run  you  will  make  a  larger 
net  profit  selling  your  colts  as  two-year-olds  than 
at  any  other  age. 

Now,  to  determine  how  much  land  will  be 
needed  to  support  the  colts.  The  weanlings 
should  have  eight  pounds  of  hay  per  day  during 
the  winter  months  or  seven  hundred  pounds  for 
the  season.  One  quarter  of  an  acre  of  land  will 
keep  the  weanling  in  hay  every  season.  When 
the  yearlings  come  on  they  will  eat  almost  as 
much  hay  as  aged  horses.  The  weanling  will  eat 
seven  quarts  of  oats  per  day  or  forty  bushels  dur- 
ing the  winter.  Four-fifths  of  an  acre  of  ground 
will  raise  enough  oats  for  the  weanling.  The 
yearlings  will  eat  the  same  amount  during  the 
breaking  season  and  following  winter.  One  and 
three-fifths  acres  will  raise  the  oats  needed  for 
this  purpose.  After  your  oldest  foals  are  year- 
lings, in  order  to  be  prepared  to  support  your 
mare,  her  weanling  and  her  yearling  up  to  the 
spring  of  its  two-year-old  form,  you  must  have 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

seven  and  one-half  acres  of  land  for  each  mare  you 
started  with,  figured  as  follows  : 

Two  acres  in  pasturage  for  mare ;  one  acre  in 
hay  for  mare;  seven-tenths  acre  in  oats  for  the 
mare;  one-fourth  acre  in  hay  for  the  weanling; 
one  acre  in  hay  for  the  yearling;  four-fifths  acres 
of  oats  for  the  weanling ;  one  and  three-fifths  acres 
of  oats  for  the  yearling. 

Of  course  if  you  keep  your  colts  after  the  spring 
of  their  two-year-old  form  you  will  need  more 
land,  but  the  above  figures  give  you  a  basis  to 
work  on. 

THE    TRACK. 

After  the  farm  is  purchased  the  plot  should  be 
selected  on  which  to  lay  out  either  a  mile  or  a  half- 
mile  track.  If  possible  this  should  be  located 
somewhere  within  sight  of  the  public  highway. 
It  is  a  good  advertisement  for  the  farm,  besides 
giving  it  a  "  ready-for-business "  appearance. 
With  the  track  so  located  visitors  will  not  have 
to  go  to  a  distant  part  of  the  farm  to  see  the  horses 
work. 

I  prefer  that  the  track  be  laid  out  on  low  ground 
if  convenient.  By  doing  this  you  get  away  from 
the  high  winds,  the  soil ;~  usually  soft  and  spongy, 
and  the  track  does  not  get  hard. 

RULES  FOR  LAYING  OUT  TRACKS. 

For  reference,  the  rules  for  laying  out  tracks  are 
here  inserted  : 

To  lay  out  a  half-mile  track,  lay  off  two  straight 
sides,  six  hundred  feet  each  (parallel)  and  four 

53 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

hundred  and  fifty-two  feet  four  and  three-eighths 
inches  apart,  connected  at  each  end  with  a  per- 
fect semi-circle  (radius  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
six  feet,  two  and  three-sixteenths  inches).  Place 
the  fence  exactly  upon  a  line  so  formed  (which  is 
the  inside  of  the  track),  and  the  track  will  measure 
exactly  half  a  mile  three  feet  from  the  inside  fence, 
to  be  placed  according  to  the  width  of  the  track 
desired.  Thirteen  acres  will  be  required  for  a 
half-mile  track  thirty  feet  wide,  fifteen  acres  for 
a  half-mile  track  sixty  feet  wide. 


If  not  convenient  to  obtain  an  engineer  to  run 
the  curve,  it  can  be  done  as  follows  :  Place  a 
stake  midway  between  the  parallel  straight  lines 
at  each  end ;  take  a  wire  with  the  loop  at  the  end, 
loose  enough  to  turn  upon  the  stake,  and  measure 
upon  this  wire  two  hundred  and  thirty-six  feet 
two  and  three  sixteenths  inches  (the  radius  of  the 
curve),  which  from  the  centre  stake  will  exactly 
reach  the  ends  of  the  straight  lines ;  then  describe 
a  semi-circle,  beginning  at  the  end  of  one  side, 

54 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

putting  down  a  stake  every  twelve  feet,  if  this  is 
the  length  of  the  fence  panels  desired. 

To  lay  out  a  full  mile  track,  select  a  level  field 
of  forty-two  acres ;  draw  through  the  center  of  it  a 
straight  line  of  four  hundred  and  forty  yards  (a 
quarter  of  a  mile).  On  each  side  of  this  line,  and 
an  exact  distance  of  one  hundred  and  forty  yards 
two  inches  from  it,  draw  parallel  lines  of  equal 
length,  so  that  the  space  between  the  two  outer  lines 
will  be  two  hundred  and  eighty  yards,  four  inches. 

This  being  done,  a  stake  should  be  driven  at 
each  end  of  the  centre  line ;  a  cord  should  be  fas- 
tened thereto.  Extend  the  cord  at  right  angles 
for  one  hundred  and  forty  yards  two  inches,  until 
it  touches  the  end  of  the  outer  line,  and  then 
describe  with  the  extreme  end  of  the  cord  an  outer 
curve  or  semi-circle  between  the  ends  of  the  two 
outer  lines.  There  will  be  a  continuous  outer  line, 
being  exactly  a  mile  (one  thousand  seven  hundred 
and  sixty  yards)  in  length,  and  requiring  an  en- 
closure of  forty-six  acres  of  ground.  From  this 
outer  line  or  track,  set  the  fence  of  the  course 
three  feet  in  on  the  straight  sides  and  curves.  In 
this  way  an  exact  mile  (as  near  as  may  be)  is  pre- 
served for  the  actual  foot  track  of  all  the  horses. 
The  first  distance  post  is  sixty  yards  from  the 
judges'  stand,  the  second  is  two  hundred  and 
forty  yards,  and  the  stand  is  sixty  yards  before 
entering  the  turn.  The  track  should  be  graded 
around  the  turn  like  the  track  of  a  railroad  or 
circus,  the  outer  portion  highest,  so  that  a  horse 
can  extend  himself  at  full  speed. 

55 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

THE    CINDER    TRACK. 

A  cinder  track  should  be  built  inside  of  the 
main  track,  about  three-eighths  of  a  mile  in  cir- 
cumference, with  turns  well  thrown  up.  The 
track  should  be  from  fifteen  to  twenty  feet  wide 
and  fenced  on  both  sides.  This  makes  a  minia- 
ture track  for  leading  and  breaking  colts  and  jog- 
ging in  muddy  weather  when  you  cannot  get  onto 
your  main  track. 

PADDOCKS. 

In  dividing  your  farm  and  in  fencing  remember 
to  have  plenty  of  paddocks  from  one  to  five  acres — 
different  sizes  for  different  purposes. 

Most  farms  have  a  large  pasture-field  for  their 
brood-mares.  I  prefer  dividing  them  into  lots 
or  pasture-fields  of  not  over  ten  acres.  If  there 
is  no  shade  in  the  pastures  then  trees  should  be 
set  out  in  order  to  afford  the  mares  protection 
from  sun,  storms  and  flies.  In  some  of  the  brood- 
mare pastures  you  will  want  small  feeding  pad- 
docks for  the  colts,  as  mentioned  in  chapter  five. 

To  lay  out  the  farm  in  the  most  convenient 
manner,  a  road  should  be  built  through  the  center 
so  that  the  owner,  his  family,  his  friends  or  vis- 
itors, can  drive  about  the  farm  and  see  all  the 
horses  without  wasting  a  lot  of  time  driving 
through  the  fields. 

FENCING. 

As  to  fencing,  never  allow  any  barbed  wire  on 
the  place.  A  board  fence,  five  feet  high,  is  the 

56 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

best.  I  prefer  sixteen-foot  boards  with  posts  set 
eight  feet  apart  and  three  and  a  half  feet  in  the 
ground.  The  fence  should  be  capped  with  a  six- 
inch  board.  The  posts  should  be  of  cedar,  chest- 
nut or  second-growth  oak,  which  I  fancy  in  the 
order  named.  A  fence  properly  built  will  last 
twenty-five  years.  There  should  be  good,  strong 
gates  connecting  the  lots. 

STABLES. 

When  the  time  comes  to  build  stables  you  will 
probably  first  build  your  main  barn.  Later,  if 
you  have  a  large  number  of  colts  to  train,  it  will 
be  necessary  to  build  a  training  barn  near  the 
track.  When  it  comes  time  to  build  this  barn 
locate  it  where  visitors  are  least  likely  to  visit  it 
and  bother  your  men. 

MAIN    BARN. 

The  main  barn  on  the  largest  farms  should  con- 
tain from  thirty  to  thirty-six  stalls.  Sixteen 
stalls  are  enough  for  one  training  barn  to  contain. 

In  the  main  barn  there  should  be  a  hallway, 
twenty  feet  wide,  of  yellow  clay  that  will  pack 
solid  and  clean.  This  is  the  most  sanitary  floor- 
ing. The  barn  should  be  light,  airy  and  well 
ventilated.  If  possible,  it  should  be  lighted  by 
electricity,  with  gas  as  second  choice.  If  this 
cannot  be  done  lanterns  will  have  to  be  used. 
Establish  a  rule  on  the  farm  that  no  lanterns 
shall  be  carried  about  unless  absolutely  necessary. 
Enforce  this  rule  as  a  precaution  against  fire. 

57 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

Allow  no  smoking  or  lighting  of  matches  in  the 
barn.  The  evening  feeding  should  be  done  before 
dark  so  that  it  will  not  be  necessary  to  use  lan- 
terns. 

The  stalls  should  be  of  different  sizes,  for  in- 
stance, twelve  by  fourteen,  twelve  by  twelve,  ten 
by  twelve,  while  a  few  eight  by  twelve  stalls  may 
be  built  for  weanlings. 

Everything  should  be  arranged  as  conveniently 
as  possible.  The  grain  and  bran  bins  should  be 
so  placed  overhead  that  the  feed  will  not  have 
to  be  carried  long  distances.  Water  hydrants 
should  be  so  located  that  water  will  not  have  to 
be  carried  any  further  away  than  three  stalls. 
This  makes  it  easier  for  the  men,  is  time  saved, 
that  means  money  and  affords  increased  fire 
protection. 

The  main  barn  should  contain  an  office  or  wait- 
ing room  for  the  owner  and  visitors,  and  adjoin- 
ing working  office  where  the  records  may  be  kept. 

I  present  herewith  plans  of  what  I  consider  an 
ideal  main  barn  for  a  stock  farm,  except  that  I 
would  prefer  it  from  four  to  six  feet  higher,  in 
order  to  have  more  room  for  hay. 

As  to  building  material,  that  depends  upon 
how  much  architectural  beauty  is  desired.  I 
prefer  a  wooden  barn  to  one  of  stone  or  brick 
because  it  is  drier. 

WATER   IN   PADDOCKS. 

I  have  previously  mentioned  the  importance 
of  good  water.  There  should  be  running  water, 

58 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

spring  water  if  possible,  in  all  lots  and  paddocks. 
The  troughs  should  be  eight  to  twelve  feet  long 
and  about  sixteen  inches  deep.  A  large  trough 
is  better  than  a  small  one,  because  it  does  not 
become  heated  so  quickly  in  summer.  Pine 
wood  makes  the  best  troughs.  The  tops  should 
be  covered  with  tin,  zinc,  or  galvanized  iron,  so 
that  the  horses  will  not  eat  the  wood.  The  troughs 
should  be  well  painted.  They  will  look  neater 
and  last  longer. 

BROOD-MARE    SHEDS. 

We  now  come  to  the  brood-mare  barn.  No 
matter  how  much  money  I  might  have,  and  even 
if  able  to  build  an  expensive  brood-mare  barn,  I 
would  build  sheds  and  winter  the  mares  that  way. 
With  this  arrangement  the  mare  gets  out  at  all 
times  during  the  winter  and  takes  her  natural 
exercise.  On  account  of  this  exercise  she  will 
have  stronger  and  straighter  foals  than  otherwise 
and  the  mare  is  less  liable  to  be  injured  as  she 
sometimes  is  when  passing  through  stall  doors. 
During  the  last  fifteen  years  at  Village  Farm  the 
mares  were  wintered  in  sheds  and  we  were  very 
successful  with  them.  One  spring  there  were 
one  hundred  and  two  brood-mares  on  the  farm, 
many  of  them  outside  mares  left  to  be  wintered. 
Out  of  this  number  one  hundred  and  one  had 
foals.  This  success  was  in  no  small  degree  due 
to  the  care  they  received  at  the  hands  of  Michael 
and  Joseph  Fisher,  now  of  Snydersville,  N.  Y. 
When  mares  are  kept  in  sheds  it  makes  less  work 

62 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

for  the  brood-mare  men.  One  winter  at  Village 
Farm  one  man  looked  after  seventy-eight 
mares. 

The  brood-mare  shed  should  vary  in  length 
according  to  the  number  of  mares  to  be  housed. 
Allow  ten  feet  to  each  mare.  The  shed  should, 
ordinarily,  open  to  the  east,  thus  the  mares  will 
get  full  benefit  of  the  morning  sun  and  be  pro- 
tected from  the  prevailing  winds.  Local  weather 
conditions  might  alter  this  plan  and  the  stable 
open  preferably  to  the  south  or  southwest.  A 
manger  should  be  built  the  entire  length  of  the 
shed.  It  should  be  twenty-four  inches  wide  at 
the  bottom,  forty  inches  wide  at  top,  thirty-six 
inches  high.  The  manger  should  be  made  of 
plank,  built  tight  to  hold  grain,  and  should  be 
raised  about  eighteen  inches  from  the  ground. 
On  each  side  of  the  posts  supporting  the  front  of 
the  shed  should  be  nailed  a  triangular  piece  of 
plank,  four  feet  high  and  twelve  inches  wide,  the 
base  of  the  triangle  resting  on  the  ground.  This 
keeps  the  mares  away  from  the  posts  and  there  is 
less  danger  of  their  injuring  their  hips. 

On  the  south  end  of  the  shed  ten  box  stalls, 
fourteen  by  fourteen,  should  be  built.  These 
may  be  used  either  in  foaling  or  for  sick  mares, 
which  need  immediate  attention,  or  for  cross 
mares. 

In  front  of  the  shed  should  be  a  yard  extending 
three  hundred  feet  to  the  fence.  Of  course  there 
will  be  a  trough  in  the  yard  so  mares  can  drink 
whenever  they  desire. 

63 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

THE    FARM    SUPERINTENDENT. 

Now,  unless  you  are  a  practical  horseman,  or 
even  if  you  once  were  a  horseman  and  your  knowl- 
edge of  horses  has  been  lying  dormant  for  years 
while  you  were  accumulating  a  share  of  the  world's 
goods,  the  next  thing  for  you  to  do  will  be  to  select 
your  farm  superintendent. 

You  will  be  besieged  with  applications  for  the 
position  and  you  may  gain  the  mistaken  idea  that 
a  competent  superintendent  is  easy  to  secure. 
The  contrary  is  the  case,  which  you  will  see  by 
studying  the  superintendent's  requirements,  as 
set  forth  in  detail  in  the  chapter  on  "  Manage- 
ment of  Stock  Farms." 

A  farm  that  has  been  laid  out  as  directed  will 
come  close  to  being  an  ideal  one.  Naturally, 
there  are  minor  details  which  can  best  be  left  to 
the  owner's  good  judgment. 


Chapter   Four 
THE   STALLION 

Purchasing  a  Premier —  Over -developed  Sires. —  Concrete 
Examples. —  Almont  Jr. —  Almonarch. —  Natural  Speed. — 
Blood  Lines. —  The  Stallion's  Sire  —  The  Stallion's  Dam. — 
The  Stallion's  Individuality. — My  Ideal  Stallion. —  Trotter  vs. 
Pacer. —  Shall  the  Stallion  be  Raced  ?  —  The  Stud  Season. — 
Care  of  Stallion. — Feeding. — Covering  the  Mare. —  The  Breed- 
ing Pen. —  Trial  Sheet  and  Stud  Book. 

AFTER  having  selected  a  site  for  your  stock 
farm,    purchased   the  land,   laid  out  the 
track  and  built  the  stables,  you  are  ready 
to  appear  before  the  world  as  a  breeder.     You 
will  be  warmly  welcomed,  for  horsemen  are  loyal 
to  one  another.     The  turf  press,  to  encourage  you 
and  perhaps  in  anticipation  of  your  becoming  one 
of  their  advertising  patrons,  will  say  nice  things 
about  you.     Everything  will  look  rosy,  but  your 
troubles  have  just  begun. 

PURCHASING   A    PREMIER. 

After  engaging  your  superintendent,  if  you  are 
to  have  one,  the  next  thing  to  do  is  to  purchase  a 
stallion  to  head  your  stud. 

You  will  have  many  advisers  anxious  to  assist 
you  in  making  your  selection.  If  the  advice 
comes  from  experienced  horsemen,  give  it  heed, 
but  do  not  hesitate  to  exercise  your  own  judg- 

65 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

ment,  for  you  are  now  at  a  very  critical  point  in 
your  career  as  a  breeder. 

If  you  make  a  mistake  in  selecting  your  stal- 
lion and  his  produce  fail  to  fulfil  your  expecta- 
tions, it  will  mean  a  loss  of  time  and  money,  and 
be  a  matter  of  constant  regret.  If  you  do  make 
a  mistake  in  your  stallion  dispose  of  him  as  soon 
as  you  discover  it,  rather  than  hang  on,  .hoping 
against  hope,  and  finally  becoming  so  disap- 
pointed as  to  cause  you  to  give  up  in  disgust. 

OVER-DEVELOPED    SIRES. 

Above  all  things,  do  not  join  that  mad  scramble 
of  young  breeders  anxious  to  secure  a  stallion  that 
has  been  prominently  before  the  public  as  a  rac- 
ing machine  for  several  seasons.  Such  racing  has 
sapped  his  vitality  and  has  taken  from  him  some- 
thing nature  cannot  replace.  It  is  sometimes 
advisable  to  race  a  stallion  one  year  so  that  the 
public  may  decide  whether  or  not  he  is  game, 
good-gaited  and  has  speed  to  transmit.  The  stal- 
lion should  not  be  raced  hard  during  this  one 
season.  Two  or  three  good  races  are  sufficient. 

Before  continuing  my  advice  on  the  selection 
of  the  stallion,  let  me  say  that  my  views  against 
severely  campaigned  stallions  as  stock  horses  are 
very  decided  and  have  been  gained  through 
actual  experience. 

CONCRETE    EXAMPLES — ALMONT   JR. 

The  year  following  Almont  Jr.'s  retirement 
from  the  turf,  after  being  almost  drilled  to  death, 

66 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

he  got  only  forty  per  cent  of  his  mares  with  foal. 
The  following  season  the  percentage  was  sixty 
and  the  next  year  seventy  per  cent,  and  in  time 
he  became  a  sure  foal  getter,  which  he  had  been 
previous  to  his  hard  racing  campaign.  Later, 
when  his  produce  came  on,  it  did  not  surprise  me 
to  find  that  his  best  performers  were  sired  before 
his  severe  training  and  racing  season,  although  he 
attracted  the  best  mares  after  his  reputation  as  a 
race-horse  was  established.  The  good  performers 
that  were  sired  after  his  retirement  were  foaled 
several  years  after  the  severe  campaign  of  1881. 
The  following  is  the  list  of  Almont  Jr.'s  fastest 
performers  gotten  before  1881,  with  the  year 
indicated  in  which  the  dam  of  each  was  covered, 
viz.,  Belle  Hamlin  (2.12%),  1878;  Globe  (2.14%), 
1880;  Maud  T.  (2.19^),  1876  and  Justina  (2.20), 
(2.13  to  pole),  1878.  The  following  is  the  list  of 
the  fastest  performers  gotten  by  Almont  Jr.  after 
1881  :  Wardwell  (2.15),  1882;  Ovid  (3)  (2.15^), 
1888  \Glendennis  (2.17  M),  1885  ;  Play  Boy  (2.18^), 
1884,  and  Lucretia  (2.20),  1884. 

ALMONARCH. 

I  noticed  the  same  thing  in  connection  with 
Almonarch  (2.24%).  His  season  of  1883  on  the 
Grand  Circuit  was  a  severe  one,  and  most  of  his 
races  were  long-drawn-out  affairs.  In  1885  I  had 
him  in  charge  and  he  was  a  well  worn-out  stallion. 
He  was  bred  to  forty-two  mares  and  got  but  fifteen 
foals.  The  following  season  he  stood  on  the  farm 
of  J.  D.  Yeomans,  East  Aurora,  N,  Y,,  and  I 

67 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

watched  the  outcome  closely.  He  was  bred  to 
fifty  odd  mares  and  got  about  thirty  foals.  In 
1887  he  was  bred  to  sixty-two  mares  and  got 
about  forty-five  foals.  After  that  time,  with  rest 
and  care,  he  proved  as  sure  as  the  average  stal- 
lion. Previous  to  his  severe  campaign  he  had 
been  a  very  sure  foal  getter.  The  dam  of  Topsey 
(2.091/2),  Almonarch's  fastest  trotter,  was  covered 
twelve  years  after  his  retirement.  Homora,  the 
dam  of  Fantasy  (2.06),  and  Satory,  the  dam  of 
Mandolin  (2.16)  and  grandam  of  Dare  Devil  (2.09), 
were  both  gotten  in  1881,  before  the  severe  cam- 
paign. The  register  gives  Satory  as  foaled  in 
1884.  This  is  incorrect,  she  was  foaled  in  1882. 
Her  dam,  Mollie  O,  produced  Golconda,  by  Mam- 
brino  King,  in  1884. 

Almont  Jr.  and  Almonarch  are  two  good  ex- 
amples of  the  deteriorating  effect  a  severe  cam- 
paign has  on  a  stallion  for  from  three  to  five  years 
afterwards.  I  know  of  a  number  of  other  stal- 
lions which  could  be  cited  as  examples,  but  the 
reader  may  draw  his  own  conclusions.  Mention 
could  be  made  of  many  hard-raced  stallions  to 
which  breeders  flocked,  after  those  horses  had 
made  arduous  Grand  Circuit  campaigns,  that  have 
not  proved  successful  sires,  or  did  not,  until 
many  seasons  after  their  retirement  from  the  turf. 
Of  course  there  are  exceptions  to  all  rules  and 
once  in  a  while  you  will  run  across  a  fast  trotter 
gotten  by  an  over-developed  sire  soon  after  his 
retirement  from  the  turf.  Such  a  trotter  is  often 
found  to  be  from  a  mare  of  great  vitality  or  was 

68 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

sired  by  a  sluggish  horse  which  would  not,  of  his 
own  accord,  race  to  his  limit  and  would  thus  save 
himself  some. 

The  experience  gained  from  watching  the  pro- 
duce of  Almont  Jr.  and  Almonarch  after  their 
severe  campaigns  was  of  great  interest  to  Mr.  C.  J. 
Hamlin.  After  studying  the  matter  he  became 
so  prejudiced  against  developed  sires  (by  that  he 
meant  those  raced  excessively)  that  he  never  hesi- 
tated to  express  his  views  in  print,  as  has  been 
noted  in  a  previous  chapter. 

I  have  wandered  somewhat  from  my  subject, 
but  I  consider  this  phase  of  the  breeding  problem 
important.  It  is  something  to  consider  in  select- 
ing your  premier  stallion. 

NATURAL    SPEED. 

Do  not  understand  me  to  mean  that  because  I 
do  not  fancy  over-developed  sires  I  do  not  want 
speed  in  a  stallion.  I  want  all  the  natural  speed 
I  can  get,  the  more  the  better,  for  if  a  stallion 
does  not  have  natural  speed  he  cannot  transmit 
it  to  his  progeny.  As  previously  stated,  in  order 
to  satisfy  the  public  I  do  not  object  to  a  stallion's 
speed  being  developed  up  to  a  certain  point. 

BLOOD    LINES. 

Having  decided  whether  or  not  you  want  a 
developed  sire  you  must  give  some  attention  to 
the  blood  lines  of  the  different  stallions  which  you 
have  in  mind. 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

I  would  not  presume  to  limit  you  to  any  par- 
ticular blood  line  for  there  are  many  successful 
strains. 

THE  STALLION'S  SIRE. 

I  prefer  the  sire  of  a  stallion  to  be  a  horse  known 
to  possess  great  natural  speed  and  descended  from 
a  line  of  stallions  known  to  possess  great  natural 
speed.  If  the  sire  of  the  horse  which  you  are  con- 
sidering was  raced  severely  and  campaigned  to 
death,  I  advise  you  to  make  sure  his  son  was 
gotten  either  before  his  severe  campaigns  or  from 
three  to  five  years  after  his  retirement  from  the 
turf.  The  sire  of  your  stallion,  if  old  enough, 
should  be  a  successful  producer  of  speed,  and  in 
all  events  descended  from  a  line  of  successful 
producers  of  speed.  By  a  successful  speed-pro- 
ducing sire  I  do  not  mean  a  horse  that  has  sired 
a  large  number  in  the  2.30  list  with  but  a  small 
percentage  of  good  race-horses,  nor  a  sire  that  has 
sired  just  one  or  two  fast  performers.  A  truly 
successful  sire  is  one  that  gets  a  fair  proportion 
of  speed  from  every  crop  of  colts.  The  best  way 
to  compare  sires  is  by  the  amount  of  money  their 
produce  win  at  the  races.  The  time  is  bound  to 
come  when  more  attention  will  be  given  to  statis- 
tics in  this  direction  and  less  attention  will  be 
paid  to  the  number  of  a  horse's  2.30  or  2.20  per- 
formers. The  sire  of  your  stallion  should  be  a 
beautiful  horse  and  the  sire  of  beautiful  horses. 
The  farther  back  the  stallion's  paternal  ancestors 
have  combined  beauty  and  speed  the  better, 

70 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

If  you  find  a  stallion  that  fulfils  requirements 
on  the  sire's  side  you  must  turn  to  his  dam. 

THE  STALLION'S  DAM. 

The  stallion's  dam  should  be  a  beautiful  show 
mare  known  to  possess  great  natural  speed.  The 
farther  back  her  direct  maternal  ancestors  fulfil 
the  same  requirements,  the  better.  I  do  not 
object  to  a  mare  that  has  been  raced  enough  to 
demonstrate  to  the  public  that  she  has  speed,  and 
thus  benefit  her  sire  and  dam ;  in  fact,  I  prefer  it. 
However,  my  objections  to  over-developed  dams 
are  as  deep  rooted  as  my  objections  to  over- 
developed sires. 

The  dam  of  your  stallion  should  be  as  nearly  a 
perfect  individual  as  possible.  If  choosing  for 
myself  I  would  want  her  to  be  like  my  ideal  brood- 
mare which  I  describe  in  the  following  chapter. 
If  the  dam  of  the  stallion  under  consideration  is 
old  enough,  her  produce  should  have  shown 
speed.  If  the  stallion  is  from  a  young  and  untried 
mare  I  should  prefer  him  to  be  her  first  or  second 
foal.  In  the  long  run  these  are  a  mare's  best 
foals.  This  subject  is  treated  more  in  detail  in 
the  next  chapter.  The  previous  remarks  as  to 
the  pedigree  of  the  sire  of  your  stallion  can  be 
applied  to  the  pedigree  of  his  dam. 

THE  STALLION'S  INDIVIDUALITY. 

If  from  your  original  list  of  available  stallions 
you  have  found  one  that  fulfils  the  pedigree  re- 
quirements you  must  pass  on  to  his  individuality. 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

As  to  size  I  prefer  a  stallion  about  15. 2, but,  all 
other  things  being  satisfactory,  his  size  might 
range  anywhere  from  15.1  to  16  hands.  The 
majority  of  the  most  successful  sires  stand  about 
15.2  hands.  Only  a  small  percentage  of  the  16- 
hand  stallions  become  great  sires.  There  are  too 
many  blanks  at  that  height.  A  comparison  in 
the  human  race  is  the  weight  of  the  greatest  men, 
more  of  them  weighing  one  hundred  and  fifty 
pounds  than  two  hundred  pounds. 

The  stallion  should  have  a  beautiful  masculine 
look  in  all  his  actions;  an  impressive,  clean-cut 
head  and  a  long  neck,  with  great  width  between 
expressive  eyes.  The  eyes  I  prefer  to  be  hazel- 
colored.  He  should  be  full-chested,  well-muscled 
and  carry  a  beautiful  waterspout  tail  at  all  times. 
In  color  of  coat  I  prefer  a  seal  brown.  There  are 
fewer  blanks  in  that  color.  The  next  colors  in 
order  of  preference  are  dark  chestnut  (not  sorrel), 
bay  and  black. 

I  prefer  as  little  white  marking  as  possible, 
although  there  are  many  good  horses  with  white 
legs.  I  do  not  object  to  a  star  and  hind  ankles 
white.  Many  people  object  to  a  great  deal  of 
white  about  a  horse  because  such  animals  are  hard 
to  mate.  Others  object  to  white  hoofs,  but  I  con- 
sider that  nonsense.  I  do  not  think  white  hoofs 
are  any  more  brittle  or  thin-shelled  than  black 
ones.  You  find  such  hoofs  of  both  colors. 

The  stallion  should  have  plenty  of  substance 
and  be  a  horse  of  quality.  He  should  have  good 
bone,  the  very  best  of  legs  and  feet  and  perfect 

72 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

hocks.  I  insist  on  strong  hocks  for  they  are 
usually  a  horse's  weakest  point.  There  are  three 
things  my  ideal  stallion  must  possess  :  good  looks, 
good  eyes,  and  good  hocks. 

As  to  action  the  stallion  must  have  plenty  of  it, 
a  nice  round  stroke,  but  he  must  not  be  choppy 
gaited.  The  greatest  trouble  with  many  trotters 
is,  they  have  not  action  enough  in  front  to  get  out 
of  the  way  of  their  hind  feet.  There  is  some- 
thing impressive  about  a  horse  with  an  even, 
unchangeable  stride. 

The  stallion  should  have  plenty  of  natural 
speed,  so  that  he  may  be  hitched  at  any  time,  go 
out  for  a  brush  and  show  within  a  notch  or  two 
of  his  speed  without  making  any  fuss  about  it  or 
asking  to  be  excused. 

MY    IDEAL    STALLION. 

My  requirements  may  be  very  exacting,  but  if 
they  are  satisfied  the  horse  will  be  nearly  per- 
fect. The  horse  which  in  my  experience  came 
nearest  filling  the  bill  was  Prince  Regent  (2.16^ 
to  high  wheels).  He  was  a  son  of  M^mbrino 
King  and  the  first  foal  of  Estabella,  the  dam  of 
Heir-at-Law  (2.05%),  etc.  Prince  Regent  died 
in  the  spring  of  his  seven-year-old  form,  just  pre- 
vious to  commencing  his  stud  season.  Sixty- 
four  mares  had  been  booked  to  him  that  year  at 
five  hundred  dollars.  He  sired  twenty-three 
foals,  of  which  nine  have  standard  records  averag- 
ing 2.16,  including  Bright  Regent  (2.06%),  Emily 
(2.11),  etc. 

73 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

Had  he  lived  I  think  Prince  Regent  would  have 
been  one  of  the  greatest  sires  the  world  has  ever 
known.  Village  Farm  refused  offers  of  fifty 
thousand  dollars  for  him  on  two  different  occa- 
sions. . 

TROTTER   VS.    PACER. 

It  will  be  noticed  that  in  speaking  of  the  stal- 
lion to  head  a  newly  established  farm  I  have  men- 
tioned only  a  trotter  because  where  a  man  wishes 
to  purchase  but  one  stallion  I  would  advise  buy- 
ing a  trotter.  You  can  secure  better  paying 
patronage  with  a  trotting  stallion  and  you  will 
get  enough  pacers  from  him.  So  many  breeders 
give  you  that  knowing  smile  when  you  speak  of 
breeding  to  a  pacing  stallion.  The  good  trotters 
are  harder  to  get,  and  they  are  better  liked  by 
wealthy  patrons,  who  support  the  breeding  in- 
dustry. 

SHALL   THE    STALLION    BE    RACED? 

After  purchasing  the  stallion  you  must  decide 
whether  or  not  to  race  him.  I  have  given  my 
reasons  for  not  wishing  a  horse  to  be  raced  ex- 
cessively and  said  that  it  is  advisable  sometimes 
to  race  the  stallion  one  season  in  order  that  the 
public  may  have  a  chance  to  judge  of  his  gameness 
and  speed.  If  you  are  to  race  the  stallion,  place 
him  in  the  hands  of  a  competent  trainer.  Do  not 
try  to  economize  at  this  point  and  give  him  to  a 
cheaper,  but  less  experienced,  man,  who  may 
injure  your  horse  for  life.  Do  not  race  the  horse 
too  hard,  even  in  the  one  season  you  are  to  cam- 

74 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

paign  him.  Three  or  four  good  races  are  prefer- 
able to  a  season  of  ins  and  outs.  You  can  escape 
a  possible  chance  of  racing-out  your  horse  by 
giving  him  a  time  record,  but  this  opens  an  oppor- 
tunity for  the  "  knockers  "  to  claim  he  is  not 
game. 

THE    STUD    SEASON. 

We  have  now  arrived  at  the  stud  season.  If  you 
have  selected  a  good  stallion  there  will  be  several 
outside  brood-mare  owners  anxious  to  breed  their 
mares  to  your  horse  and  you  should  try  to  inter- 
est more.  Many  stallions  pay  for  themselves  in 
their  first  stud  season.  Remember  that  you  are 
in  the  same  position  as  a  merchant  with  goods  to 
sell  and  do  not  therefore  be  afraid  to  advertise 
judiciously.  Always  patronize  a  few  of  your 
local  papers,  including  nearby  horse  papers,  ac- 
cording to  the  good  they  can  do  you,  and  by  all 
means  advertise  in  at  least  one  or  two  turf  journals 
of  national  reputation.  This  keeps  your  horse 
before  the  general  public,  and  will  not  only  secure 
you  enough  extra  mares  to  pay  for  your  adver- 
tising but  will  augment  the  reputation  of  your 
stallion  and  increase  the  selling  price  of  his  colts, 
when  they  come  on,  and  that  is  one  of  his  best 
advertisements.  Work  every  legitimate  scheme 
to  interest  brood-mare  owners,  but  do  not 
"  knock  "  the  rival  stallions.  Enter  every  mare 
you  breed  in  the  futurities.  Enter  in  all  if  you 
think  you  can  afford  it,  if  not,  divide  the  entries 
among  them.  Ask  your  brood-mare  patrons  to 

75 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

enter  their  mares.  The  more  mares  in  foal  to 
your  stallion  that  appear  in  the  futurity  entry 
books,  the  more  advertising  the  horse  receives. 
A  futurity  entry  materially  increases  the  value 
of  the  foal  and  the  more  high-priced  colts  by  your 
horse  that  are  sold,  the  quicker  he  reaches  the  top. 
Nothing  helps  a  young  stallion  more  than  to  have 
it  known  that  you  are  breeding  some  of  your  best 
mares  to  him.  You  might  as  well  find  out  from 
the  first  crop  of  foals  whether  your  stallion  is  a 
success  or  not. 

CARE    OF    STALLION. 

In  preparing  the  stallion  for  the  stud  season 
he  should  be  jogged  every  day  except  Sunday, 
when  he  should  be  walked  for  half  an  hour  and 
grazed  when  there  is  grass.  The  horse  should 
be  jogged  early,  before  eight  o'clock,  so  that  he 
will  be  ready  for  visitors. 

My  method  of  jogging  stallions  is  to  jog  them 
four  miles  on  Monday,  eight  on  Tuesday,  four  on 
Wednesday,  eight  on  Thursday,  four  on  Friday, 
and  eight  on  Saturday.  This  was  the  practice  at 
Village  Farm,  where  the  stallions  lived  to  a  hale 
old  age. 

I  prefer  that  most  of  the  time  the  stallion  be 
jogged  on  the  road,  taking  a  different  route  on 
different  days.  Twice  a  week  he  should  be  jogged 
on  the  track.  Let  him  brush  through  the  stretch, 
say  a  quarter  in  thirty-four  or  thirty-five  seconds, 
but  never  urge  or  force  him  to  his  limit.  Stal- 
lions like  the  brushing  and  delight  in  it. 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

FEEDING. 

Great  care  should  be  taken  in  feeding  all  ani- 
mals, particularly  stallions,  which  are  more  sen- 
sitive than  mares  or  geldings.  Horses  should  be 
fed  very  regularly.  Feeding  time  should  not  vary 
ten  minutes  from  a  stated  hour.  The  stomach  is 
a  sensitive  organ  and  soon  becomes  educated  to 
expect  food  at  certain  hours.  If  that  expecta- 
tion is  regularly  gratified  the  animal  thrives 
better.  My  method  of  feeding  horses  is  :  morn- 
ing feed  at  5.45;  noon  feed  at  11.45,  and  night 
feed  at  5.30  in  winter,  5.45  in  summer. 

The  amount  of  food  to  give  a  stallion,  except 
during  the  stud  season,  is  about  three  quarts  of 
oats  in  the  morning,  two  quarts  of  crushed  oats 
and  two  quarts  of  bran  at  noon ;  three  quarts  of 
boiled  oats,  one  quart  of  bran  and  one  tablespoon 
of  oil  meal  at  night.  The  stallion  should  have 
from  fifteen  to  eighteen  pounds  of  hay  each  day 
the  year  round.  He  should  be  given  a  light  feed 
of  hay  (say  five  pounds)  in  the  morning,  the  bal- 
ance in  the  evening. 

After  the  stud  season  commences,  about  March 
i,  I  add  two  quarts  of  boiled  barley  to  the  even- 
ing feed.  The  barley  strengthens  the  stallion  in 
flesh  and  semen  and  makes  him  a  surer  foal  getter. 
During  a  heavy  stud  season  mix  a  half  dozen  fresh, 
raw  eggs  with  the  evening  feed. 

The  stallion  should  be  watered  before  feeding. 
Let  him  drink  all  he  wants.  Water  him  after 
feeding  also. 

77 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 


COVERING   THE    MARE. 

We  now  come  to  the  actual  act  of  breeding.  I 
advise  that  the  stallion  visit  the  mare  after  four 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  or  even  after  six.  It  is 
quieter  then,  and  neither  mare  nor  stallion  is 
so  liable  to  become  uneasy  and  excited. 

The  stallion  should  be  led  to  the  breeding  pen 
as  quietly  as  possible,  to  avoid  nervousness. 
Everything  should  be  ready.  Do  not  keep  him 
waiting.  I  would  advise  hobbling  the  mare  on 
all  occasions  in  order  to  protect  the  horse  from 
fright  and  accident.  If  the  stallion  is  slow  to 
cover  he  should  be  treated  as  set  forth  in  chapter 
eleven.  Treatment  for  masturbating  is  also 
given  in  the  same  chapter. 


^_  /:<?• 4.  /.'£• 


J"-o- 


1 


1 


i. 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

THE    BREEDING   PEN. 

Plans  are  presented  herewith  for  what  I  con- 
sider an  ideal  breeding  pen  and  one  which  allows 
the  colt  to  be  kept  in  front  of  its  dam  while  she 
is  being  served.  The  colt's  pen  should  be  padded. 
By  the  use  of  bars  in  front  of  the  mare  the  pen 
can  be  shortened  or  lengthened,  according  to  her 
size.  The  inside  of  pen  is  one  foot  four  inches 
wider  at  top  than  bottom. 


TRIAL    SHEET   AND    STUD    BOOK. 

Great  care  should  be  taken  in  transcribing  the 
records  of  services.  You  should  keep  a  trial  sheet 
and  a  stud  book.  On  preceding  page  is  reproduced 
the  form  I  prefer  for  a  trial  sheet. 

Enter  every  mare  on  the  farm  on  the  trial  sheet 
and  opposite  each  the  name  of  the  stallion  to 
which  she  is  to  be  bred.  After  the  first  service 
compute  the  next  trial  day,  as  explained  in  the 
following  chapter,  and  enter  it  on  the  sheet,  indi- 
cating the  number  of  days  that  will  have  inter- 
vened since  the  service.  For  instance,  if  your 
mare  was  bred  on  March  i,  in  column  nineteen  you 
should  enter  the  word  March,  and  the  number 
eighteen  to  indicate  that  on  March  19  the  mare  is 
to  be  tried,  which  will  be  eighteen  days  after 
being  bred.  If  she  refuses,  then  under  column 
twenty-two  you  should  enter  the  word  March 
and  the  figure  21  to  indicate  that  on  March  22 
the  mare  is  to  be  tried,  which  will  be  twenty-one 

81 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

days  after  being  bred,  and  so  on  till  the  mare 
proves  with  foal. 

I  prefer  the  following  form  of  a  stud  book  : 


THE  IDEAL  STOCK  FARM 

EAST  AURORA.  N.  Y. 

RECORD  OF  MARES 


DATE  OF  EACH  SERVICE. 


If  the  mare  is  an  outsider  furnish  the  owner 
with  a  duplicate  of  the  above  form,  properly  filled 
out,  on  the  back  of  which  is  the  following  form  : 

IMPORTANT 


TUs  m*n  m*a  bt  trial  n  Utt. 


gg  JVKC  TO 


THIS  CEf.TtFlCA.TK. 


82 


Chapter  Five 
THE  BROOD-MARE 

Best  Way  to  Purchase  Mares. —  The  Ideal  Brood-Mare. — 
Pedigree. — Care. —  Preparing  for  the  Foal. — Care  of  Mare 
and  Colt  after  Foaling. — Breeding  the  Mare. — Care  of  Mare 
and  Colt  in  the  Pasture. — Weaning  the  Colt. — Mare  on  Winter 
Diet. —  Age  at  which  to  Breed. — Developed  Mares. — Inbreed- 
ing.— Selecting  a  Mate. —  First  Impressions. — Importance  of 
Natural  Speed. 

HAVING  founded  your  stock  farm  and  pur- 
chased your  stallion,  let  us  now  consider 
the  purchase  of  brood-mares. 
As  soon  as  it  becomes  known  that  you  are  in 
the  market  for  mares  you  will  be  besieged  with 
letters  from  brood-mare  owners  in  such  numbers 
that  you  may  be  led  to  the  erroneous  conclusion 
that  all  brood-mare  owners  are  anxious  to  sell. 
If  you  "  follow  up  "  each  letter  you  will  lose  much 
time  and  spend  a  considerable  but  useless  amount 
in  railroad  fares,  for  it  is  inconceivable  that  every 
mare  offered  will  suit  you. 

BEST   WAY   TO    PURCHASE   MARES. 

In  many  respects  the  best  way  to  purchase  your 
brood-mares  is  at  auction.  By  purchasing  at 
auction  you  secure  the  mares  at  the  public  valua- 
tion ;  you  get  them  all  at  once,  and  are  not  put  to 
the  expense  nor  risk  of  shipping  the  mares  to  your 

83 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

farm  from  all  parts  of  the  country.  If  you  con- 
clude to  buy  your  mares  at  auction  watch  the  sale 
announcements  closely,  especially  dispersal  an- 
nouncements of  farms  going  out  of  existence,  for 
their  best  mares,  not  the  culls  alone,  will  be 
offered.  It  is  always  advisable,  if  you  are  inter- 
ested in  a  particular  consignment,  to  visit  the 
farm  about  two  weeks  before  the  sale  and  look  the 
mares  over  carefully.  If  you  wait  till  a  mare 
enters  the  sale  ring  you  may,  in  the  excitement 
of  bidding,  buy  something  you  would  not  have 
purchased  had  you  given  her  careful  inspection. 

If  you  examine  the  mare  at  the  farm  you  will 
probably  have  an  opportunity  to  see  some  of  her 
produce,  the  kind  of  gaited  colts  they  are,  the 
stallion  she  breeds  best  from,  and  will  discover 
whether  or  not  she  is  a  regular  breeder  and  a  good 
brood-mare. 

With  these  preliminary  remarks  as  to  the  man- 
ner of  purchasing  mares,  I  will  pass  to  a  consider- 
ation of  the  sort  of  mares  most  likely  to  prove 
successful  as  a  producer  of  speed. 

THE    IDEAL    BROOD-MARE. 

My  ideal  brood-mare  should  stand  from  15  to 
15.3  hands;  should  have  a  clean-cut  head,  fine 
ears,  and  expressive  and  intelligent  protruding 
eyes  (not  dull  nor  sunken),  which  indicate  kind- 
ness and  will-power, — ideal  traits  in  a  brood-mare. 
The  neck  and  throttle  should  be  clean-cut.  I  pre- 
fer a  neck  of  medium  length,  neither  too  long  nor 
too  short.  The  shoulders  should  not  be  straight, 

84 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

but  oblique  and  heavily  muscled.  The  legs 
should  be  flat  and  fluted,  skin  not  too  thick,  and 
feet  good.  The  mare  should  stand  perfectly 
straight  both  in  front  and  behind.  She  should 
have  a  deep  chest.  Her  back  should  be  short ;  her 
barrel  roomy  and  well  ribbed ;  her  quarters  beau- 
tiful, smooth  and  round,  with  heavy  muscles 
running  well  down  to  the  hock.  As  in  the  stal- 
lion, it  is  important  that  the  mare  have  the  best 
possible  hock,  with  no  sign  of  coarseness.  An 
ideal  hind  leg  is  one  along  the  back  of  which  a 
straight  edge  could  be  laid  so  as  to  bring  the  hock, 
pastern  and  point  of  ankle  in  the  same  straight 
line.  The  mare  should  carry  the  same  beautiful 
tail  advocated  in  the  previous  chapter.  In  gen- 
eral conformation  the  mare  should  be  full  but 
neither  too  heavy  nor  too  light. 

PEDIGREE. 

As  to  her  pedigree,  the  remarks  on  the  stallion's 
blood  lines  are  applicable  here.  It  might  be  added, 
however,  that  a  mare  that  is  a  member  of  what 
is  known  as  a  "  brood-mare  family  "  that  is,  a 
mare  with  a  direct  line  of  productive  maternal 
ancestors,  stands  a  better  chance  than  any  other 
of  becoming  a  successful  producer  herself. 

CARE. 

After  securing  your  mares  you  should  see  that 
great  pains  are  taken  to  care  for  them  properly 
while  on  their  way  to  your  farm  and  after  their 

85 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

arrival.  The  better  health  the  brood-mare  enjoys 
the  better  foal  she  will  produce.  She  should  be 
kept  in  the  best  possible  condition  the  year  round. 
By  that  I  do  not  mean  that  she  should  carry  a  lot 
of  flesh,  because  a  fleshy  mare  is  liable  to  cramp 
her  foal  and  it  will  come  small,  crooked  and  weak. 
There  is  a  happy  medium.  I  prefer  to  have  the 
mare  a  trifle  thin  than  too  fleshy. 

The  care  of  a  brood-mare  is  not  a  subject  that 
can  be  treated  at  random.  We  must  start  at 
some  period  of  her  existence  and  follow  her 
through  a  year  of  the  attention  she  requires.  It 
would  be  natural,  perhaps,  to  start  with  the  act 
of  mating  her  with  the  stallion  and  follow  her 
through  a  year  till  she  foals.  However,  I  intend 
to  treat  the  mare  from  a  standpoint  slightly  dif- 
ferent. So  many  mares  are  purchased  when 
already  in  foal  that  I  shall  take  up  the  mare  just 
previous  to  the  time  of  foaling  and  speak  of  the 
care  she  and  the  colt  should  receive  up  to  the  time 
the  foal  is  weaned.  At  this  point  the  weanling 
will  be  dropped  and  its  further  care  treated  in 
another  chapter.  I  will  continue  with  the  mare, 
however,  during  the  winter  up  to  the  point  when 
she  is  again  ready  to  foal.  In  the  proper  place 
mention  will  also  be  made  of  the  correct  time, 
after  the  mare  has  foaled  (nine  days),  to  breed  her 
again.  I  will  also  outline  the  method  of  trying 
mares  in  practice  at  Village  Farm.  After  these 
practical  points  have  been  covered  I  will  devote 
a  little  attention  to  some  of  the  general  theories 
of  breeding. 

86 


.  BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

PREPARING    FOR   THE    FOAL. 

When  the  time  approaches  for  the  brood-mare 
to  produce  her  foal  a  box  stall  sixteen  feet  square 
should  be  bedded  down  for  her,  with  the  bedding 
a  little  higher  around  the  edges  of  the  stall  than 
elsewhere.  The  sides  of  the  stall  should  be  per- 
fectly smooth.  There  should  be  no  hay  rack, 
while  the  feed  box  should  be  detachable  and  taken 
out  after  each  meal.  As  the  day  of  foaling  ap- 
proaches the  mare  should  be  fed  moderately. 

The  mare  should  be  taken  up  and  placed  in  a 
stall  at  about  ten  months  and  twenty-five  days 
after  being  bred. 

The  period  of  gestation  varies.  As  a  rule  old 
mares  carry  their  foals  longer  than  young  mares. 
One  mare  on  the  Village  Farm  carried  her  foal 
twelve  months  and  fifteen  days.  The  period  of 
gestation  often  varies  in  families  and  is  a  char- 
acteristic thereof.  Estabella,  and  most  of  her 
descendants  under  my  observation,  produced  at 
just  eleven  months.  The  average  period  is  com- 
puted by  various  authorities  at  from  eleven 
months  and  ten  days  to  eleven  months  and  twenty 
days. 

About  forty-eight  hours  before  foaling,  the 
mare's  udder  will  fill  up,  wax  will  form  on  the 
nipples  and  it  will  be  plainly  noticed  that  the 
pelvis  has  relaxed.  When  the  mare  reaches  this 
condition  an  attendant  should  remain  with  her, 
in  order  to  render  any  assistance  the  mare  may 
require  in  foaling  and  to  help  the  colt  to  its  feet 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

so  that  it  may  suckle  if  it  be  too  weak  to  do  so 
unaided. 

CARE    OF   MARE    AND    COLT   AFTER    FOALING. 

Shortly  after  the  colt  arrives  it  should  suckle  or 
if  too  weak  should  be  assisted  to  do  so,  for  the  first 
nourishment  will  strengthen  the  colt  very  much. 
After  the  colt  is  once  able  to  stand  on  its  feet  alone 
and  suckle  the  next  thing  is  to  make  sure  that  its 
bowels  are  working  regularly.  If  you  find  they 
are  constipated  you  will  have  to  make  an  injec- 
tion of  warm  water  and  sweet  oil,  proportions  one 
ounce  of  the  sweet  oil  to  about  one  quart  of  water. 

After  foaling,  the  '  'after  birth  "  should  be  placed 
in  a  basket  kept  purposely  for  this  use,  carried  at 
least  ten  rods  away  from  all  stables,  sprinkled 
with  quicklime  and  buried. 

In  case  of  abortion  the  mare  should  be  removed 
to  a  separate  stable  distant  from  other  mares. 
Her  hind  parts  and  tail  should  be  washed  with 
soap  and  a  solution  of  two  gallons  of  warm  water, 
two  ounces  of  creoline  and  one-quarter  ounce  of 
carbolic  acid.  The  aborted  foal  should  be  buried 
with  quicklime.  Be  very  careful  when  this  is 
done.  A  careless  employee  at  Village  Farm 
once  buried  aborted  twins  in  a  manure  pile 
and  before  his  carelessness  was  discovered  some 
forty  odd  mares  had  lost  their  foals. 

In  the  morning  after  foaling,  for  this  generally 
takes  place  at  night,  the  stable  should  be  thor- 
oughly cleaned  and  disinfected  with  creoline  or 
carbolic  acid.  The  bedding  should  be  removed 

88 


BREEDING   THE    TROTTER 

and  fresh  bedding  laid  down  after  sprinkling  the 
floor  with  air-slaked  lime.  From  this  time,  and 
for  the  next  three  weeks,  the  stall  and  bedding 
should  be  kept  scrupulously  clean,  lest  the  colt 
have  navel  trouble.  Navel  trouble  is  caused  by 
the  colt  coming  in  contact  with  the  filthy  straw 
in  struggling  about  to  get  up.  If  the  colt  is 
affected  you  will  notice,  when  it  is  a  few  days  old, 
that  it  acts  dull  and  is  sore  and  stiffened  in  cer- 
tain parts,  such  as  knees,  hips,  or  hocks.  On 
examination  you  will  find  there  is  a  leakage  from 
the  navel  cord.  In  this  event  the  colt  should  be 
treated  at  once,  as  set  forth  in  chapter  eleven. 

Within  twenty-four  hours  after  the  mare  drops 
her  foal,  and  before  she  is  allowed  to  come  in  con- 
tact with  other  mares,  her  tail  and  all  under  parts 
should  be  thoroughly  washed  with  a  solution  of 
warm  water  and  creoline  or  carbolic  acid. 

When  the  colt  is  from  seven  to  nine  days  old  it 
may  be  troubled  with  scours  or  dysentery  caused 
by  the  mare  coming  in  heat.  If  this  occurs  keep 
both  mare  and  colt  as  quiet  as  possible.  Give  the 
mare  Humphrey's  Specific  A  A  until  after  the 
twelfth  day  and  reduce  her  grain  at  least  one-half. 
Give  the  foal  Humphrey's  Specific  FF,  also  black- 
berry cordial,  recipe  and  directions  for  use  of  which 
will  be  found  in  chapter  eleven.  The  same  condi- 
tion may  be  noticed  when  the  mare  comes  in 
season  at  thirty  days,  but  by  this  time  the  colt 
should  be  strong  enough  to  go  through  the  period 
without  any  ill  effects.  If  the  trouble  should 
become  chronic,  however,  take  the  mare  from  the 

89 


BREEDING   THE   TROTTER 

pasture  and  keep  her  in  a  cool,  quiet  place  and 
cut  off  her  grain  and  feed  her  nice  hay  or  grass 
from  four  to  seven  days  till  the  colt's  bowels  are 
normal. 

As  soon  as  the  colt  is  strong  enough,  and  if  the 
weather  is  good,  the  mare  and  foal  should  be 
turned  out  in  a  paddock  from  one  to  two  hours  in 
the  morning  and  between  three  and  five  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon. 

BREEDING   THE    MARE. 

If  the  mare  and  foal  have  had  no  mishaps  the 
mare  should  be  bred  again  on  the  ninth  day  after 
foaling. 

Take  the  mare  to  the  breeding  barn  and  find 
out  by  the  aid  of  a  teaser  if  she  be  in  heat.  Do 
not  let  the  teaser  annoy  or  excite  her.  If  she  is 
ready  to  breed  let  the  stallion  cover  her.  Keep 
both  mare  and  stallion  as  quiet  as  possible,  avoid- 
ing all  excitement.  Plans  for  a  breeding  pen,  to 
hold  mare  and  colt,  were  given  in  chapter  four. 

It  is  better  to  have  a  place  for  the  colt  in  the 
breeding  pen  in  front  of  the  mare.  The  colt  is 
quieter  than  if  kept  alone  or  held  by  a  man  and 
the  mare  is  quieter  if  she  sees  the  colt  in  front  of 
her. 

After  the  mare  has  been  bred  her  next  trial  days 
are  in  succession,  eighteen  days  after  foaling, 
twenty-one  days  after  foaling,  twenty-five  days 
after,  thirty  days  after,  thirty-three  days  after, 
thirty-seven  days  after,  and  forty  two  days  after 
foaling.  After  this  she  should  be  tried  on  Tues- 

90 


BREEDING    THE   TROTTER 

day  and  Friday  or  Saturday  of  each  week  till  ten 
or  twelve  weeks  have  passed  since  breeding.  The 
trials  from  the  eighteenth  to  the  thirty-third  days 
after  foaling  are  important  ones.  If  the  mare 
stands  these  trials  it  is  safe  to  say  that  she  is  with 
foal.  If  the  mare  comes  in  season  on  any  of  these 
trial  days  she  should  be  re-bred  and  the  process 
of  trying  repeated. 

In  case  you  have  any  trouble  in  getting  the 
mare  with  foal  and  if  it  is  feared  that  she  may  be 
barren  she  should  be  treated  as  mentioned  in 
chapter  eleven. 

CARE    OF   MARE   AND    COLT   IN   PASTURE. 

We  will  now  return  to  the  mare  and  her  young 
colt.  As  soon  as  the  weather  is  fit  and  the  nights 
warm  the  mare  and  the  colt  should  be  turned  into 
pasture.  If  the  mare  does  not  thrive  that  way 
she  should  be  taken  up  at  ten  o'clock  each  morn- 
ing and  fed  two  quarts  of  crushed  oats  mixed 
with  two  quarts  of  bran.  She  should  also  be 
given  a  small  quantity  of  alfalfa  or  green  corn. 
About  three  o'clock  the  mare  should  have  a  feed 
of  from  two  to  four  quarts  of  the  mixture  already 
mentioned,  without  the  green  stuff.  About  five 
o'clock  she  should  be  turned  back  into  the  pasture 
for  the  evening. 

Too  many  mares  should  not  be  kept  in  one  pas- 
ture. As  mentioned  in  chapter  three  it  is  advis- 
able to  divide  them  among  ten-acre  pasture  lots 
rather  than  allow  all  of  them  to  run  together. 

Towards  the  middle  of  the  summer  the  colts 

91 


BREEDING   THE  TROTTER 

will  require  additional  nourishment  to  what  they 
receive  from  their  dams.  As  mentioned  in  chapter 
three,  feeding  paddocks  will  be  necessary  for  the 
colts.  They  should  be  located  in  as  high  a  spot 
as  possible.  The  paddocks  should  be  thirty-two 
feet  long  and  sixteen  feet  wide.  The  pasture 
fence  will  form  one  side  of  the  paddock.  To  form 
the  other  three  sides  set  in  posts  eight  feet 
apart  and  along  the  top  of  the  posts  (about  forty- 
six  inches  from  the  ground)  nail  boards  eight 
inches  wide,  one  and  one-half  inches  thick,  and 
sixteen  feet  long.  This  will  allow  the  colt  to  walk 
under  the  fence  and  yet  will  exclude  the  mares. 

In  the  centre  of  the  paddock  should  be  built  a 
trough  twelve  inches  wide,  six  inches  deep  and 
about  twelve  feet  long,  raised  about  four  inches 
from  the  ground  so  that  air  can  pass  under.  The 
troughs  should  be  lined  with  zinc.  This  will 
enable  the  attendant  to  keep  the  troughs  clean 
and  sweet  and  free  from  musty  feed. 

The  colts  should  be  fed  once  or  twice  a  day, 
according  to  your  own  judgment,  but  do  not  feed 
any  more  at  one  time  than  the  colts  will  eat  up 
clean.  I  prefer  a  mixed  feed  of  the  following  pro- 
portions :  oats,  two  bushels ;  wheat,  one  bushel ; 
corn,  one-half  bushel ;  bran,  fifty  pounds ;  oil  meal, 
twenty  pounds. 

By  oil  meal  I  do  not  mean  oil  cake  but  ground 
flax-seed  meal.  This  feed  should  be  thoroughly 
mixed.  If  the  colts  should  leave  any  feed,  throw 
that  away  or  feed  it  to  the  pigs,  and  clean  the 
trough  before  feeding  again. 

92 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

Be  sure  to  salt  the  mares  and  colts,  in  fact  all 
horses  on  the  farm,  once  or  twice  a  week. 

WEANING   THE    COLT. 

We  may  now  pass  over  a  month  or  two,  during 
which  the  mare  and  foal  will  ordinarily  be  doing 
well  on  pasture.  Weaning  time  approaches.  When 
the  colt  is  five  months  old  it  should  be  weaned. 

The  mare  should  be  taken  to  the  brood-mare 
shed  and  the  colt  to  some  stable  so  far  away  that 
it  cannot  hear  its  mother,  and  vice  versa.  The 
colt  should  be  placed  in  a  stall  with  a  detachable 
feed  box  and  without  a  manger.  It  will  naturally 
be  uneasy  when  first  taken  from  its  mother  and 
every  effort  should  be  made  to  keep  it  from  fret- 
ting, otherwise  it  will  lose  flesh. 

I  advise  weaning  the  colt  in  the  morning.  The 
same  afternoon,  between  four  and  five  o'clock, 
the  colt  should  be  allowed  to  suckle  for  about 
thirty  minutes.  For  the  next  three  days  it  should 
be  allowed  to  suckle  twice  a  day,  in  the  morning 
between  six  and  eight,  and  in  the  afternoon  as 
already  mentioned.  After  the  third  day  it  should 
only  be  taken  to  the  mare  in  the  afternoon.  This 
should  be  continued  for  four  to  six  days,  after 
which  the  mare  should  be  milked  once  or  twice  a 
day  until  she  has  thoroughly  dried  up.  If  there 
is  fever  or  inflammation  in  the  udder  feed  bran 
mashes,  see  that  the  mare  gets  plenty  of  exer- 
cise and  give  her  Humphrey's  Specific  AA  three 
or  four  times  a  day.  In  some  cases  hot  applica- 
tions may  be  necessary, 

93 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

After  the  colt  is  weaned  the  mare  should  be 
turned  into  pasture  again  and  remain  there  until 
time  to  take  the  mares  up  for  the  winter,  which  in 
some  seasons  will  not  be  till  November  i  or  15. 
If  the  mare  does  not  thrive  well  on  pasture  after 
the  colt  is  weaned  take  her  up  and  feed  as  directed 
for  winter  feeding. 

As  soon  as  the  colt  is  weaned  it  should  be  fed 
for  the  first  month  five  times  a  day  as  much  of  the 
mixture  it  ate  in  the  feeding  paddock  as  it  will 
clean  up  at  one  meal. 

MARE    ON    WINTER   DIET. 

When  the  mare  is  finally  taken  up  she  should 
be  put  on  a  winter  diet.  Feed  her  morning  and 
evening  three  quarts  of  a  mixture  composed  of 
two-thirds  crushed  oats  and  one-third  winter  wheat 
bran.  Give  her  all  the  hay  she  will  eat.  The  hay 
should  be  clean  and  not  musty.  I  prefer  hay  that 
is  half  timothy  and  half  clover.  She  should  also 
be  fed  at  noon  a  pint  of  winter  wheat  with  which 
has  been  mixed  a  pint  of  cotton-seed  meal.  This 
is  done  as  a  preventive  of  abortion. 

I  have  attempted  to  give  directions  for  a  mare's 
care  from  a  time  in  the  spring  just  previous  to 
foaling  till  she  is  on  winter  diet  and  is  being  car- 
ried along  carefully  with  the  expectation  of  her 
foaling  again. 

AGE  AT  WHICH  TO  BREED  DEVELOPED  MARES. 

Before  leaving  the  brood-mare,  mention  should 
be  made  of  certain  practices  of  breeding  which  are 

94 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

important  to  consider.  One  of  them  is  the  age  at 
which  the  mare  should  first  be  bred.  At  this 
point,  if  you  have  a  young  mare,  it  will  be  neces- 
sary for  you  to  decide  whether  or  not  you  wish  to 
race  her. 

A  filly  intended  for  breeding  purposes  should 
be  broken,  trained  and  her  speed  developed  like 
a  filly  intended  for  racing  purposes.  If  at  the  age 
of  two  or  three  years  she  shows  speed,  is  nicely 
gaited  and  comes  up  to  your  ideal  of  a  brood-mare, 
it  is  not  necessary  to  train  her  longer  or  to  race  her 
in  order  to  endow  her  with  the  ability  to  transmit 
speed  to  her  progeny.  Extended  development 
will  not  help  her  colts  one  particle.  A  mare  in- 
herits a  certain  amount  of  speed  ability  from  her 
parents.  She  should  be  developed  enough  to  find 
out  what  ability  she  herself  has  in  that  line.  If 
she  has  no  speed  ability  she  will  transmit  none. 

As  in  the  case  of  stallions  it  is  sometimes  advis- 
able to  race  a  mare  one  season  to  show  the  public 
she  has  speed  and  to  help  her  sire  and  dam,  but 
her  racing  career  should  be  limited  to  one  season, 
made  as  easy  for  her  as  possible,  after  which  she 
should  be  retired  to  the  brood-mare  ranks. 

A  mare  intended  for  a  race  mare  should  not  be 
bred  first  for  the  reason  that  few  mares  pack  to- 
gether again  after  foaling.  With  such  mares  a 
hot  day  and  a  hard  race  will  develop  certain  weak- 
nesses that  place  them  at  a  disadvantage  against 
other  horses.  A  few  of  our  fast  performers  have 
taken  their  records  after  producing  a  foal.  Emily 
(2.11)  was  one  of  these.  If  a  mare  is  not  to  be  raced 

95 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

I  prefer  breeding  her  as  a  three-year-old  or  four- 
year-old. 

INBREEDING. 

A  subject  of  interest  to  many  brood-mare 
owners  is  that  of  inbreeding.  It  has  been  said 
that  inbreeding  concentrates  the  vices  and  weak- 
ens the  individual.  This,  in  my  judgment,  is  not 
true  if  a  careful  selection  of  individuals  is  made. 

For  example,  I  once  knew  a  lawyer  named 
James  Miller,  in  whom  considerable  sporting 
blood  flowed.  On  returning  from  a  visit  to  Eng- 
land he  brought  me  a  setting  of  game  chicken's 
eggs  which  he  had  secured  from  a  nobleman 
friend  of  his.  I  bred  these  fowls  in  and  in  for 
sixteen  years.  They  always  bred  true  to  feather 
although  not  always  to  size.  At  the  end  of  six- 
teen years  I  had  as  good  a  lot  of  fowls  as  from  the 
first  hatching.  I  was  always  careful,  however, 
to  mate  only  the  very  best  individuals. 

The  American  trotter  is  an  example  of  a  race 
founded  by  inbreeding.  An  inbreeding  of  Mes- 
senger blood  produced  Rysdyk's  Hambletonian 
and  Mambrino  Chief,  founders  of  our  two  prin- 
cipal trotting  families.  The  trotter  of  to-day  is 
the  result  of  inbreeding  these  two  strains  with  out- 
crosses  to  Pilot  Jr.,  thoroughbred,  Clay  and 
Morgan. 

I  do  not  agree  with  a  foreign  authority  that  the 
American  trotter  is  too  highly  inbred.  The  trot- 
ting family  has  reached  its  present  perfection 
through  inbreeding  and  would  have  been  still 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

farther  advanced  but  for  the  set-back  during  the 
Civil  War  period. 

SELECTING    A    MATE. 

Naturally,  every  breeder  has  a  preference  for 
certain  lines  of  blood.  I  am  somewhat  partial  to 
the  ' '  best  son  of  a  best  son  ' '  theory.  On  pedi- 
gree alone  I  would  prefer  to  cross  a  mare  to  a  horse 
descended  from  Hambletonian  through  his  best 
sons,  George  Wilkes  and  Electioneer,  than  through 
any  other  sons  although  other  sons  were  success- 
ful, such  as  Happy  Medium,  Egbert,  Strathmore, 
Aberdeen,  Dictator,  Harold  and  Alexander's 
Abdallah.  The  latter  horse  I  consider  the  best 
son  of  his  sire  for  his  opportunities.  So  many 
trotters  have  come  from  his  few  descendants  that 
he  himself  must  have  had  the  requirements  of  a 
sensational  sire  and  would  doubtless  have  proved 
one  but  for  his  untimely  death. 

The  average  brood-mare  owner  does  not  study 
pedigrees  closely  enough.  The  most  compre- 
hensive treatment  of  this  subject  is  S.  W.  Parlin's 
book,  "  The  American  Trotter,"  which  should  be 
in  every  brood-mare  owner's  hands. 

When  you  come  to  select  a  mate  for  your  mare 
do  not  rush  to  the  stallion  most  prominent  before 
the  public  until  you  are  sure  he  will  make  a  good 
cross  on  your  mare.  Do  not  judge  a  stallion  by 
the  number  he  has  in  the  2.30  list,  but  judge  him 
by  the  number  of  good,  successful  race-horses  he 
has  sired.  As  an  example  of  crossing  two  strains 
of  blood  let  us  suppose  that  you  have  on  your 

97 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

farm  two  good  stallions,  the  best  sons  of  their 
respective  sires.  We  will  call  one  Primo,  the 
other  Ideal.  It  is  your  desire  to  establish  a  family 
from  these  two  horses.  Take  your  best  daughter 
of  Ideal  from  a  well-bred  dam.  If  she  is  also  the 
best  daughter  of  her  dam,  so  much  the  better. 
Breed  her  to  Primo.  We  will  suppose  that  you 
secure  from  this  union  a  beautiful  filly  with  ex- 
treme speed,  although  the  chances  are  it  will  be  a 
colt,  for  males  generally  come  when  you  are  look- 
ing for  the  opposite  sex.  The  filly  has  so  many 
good  qualities  you  are  determined  to  go  back  to 
the  Ideal  blood  so  you  breed  this  filly  to  Ideal.  If 
a  filly  results  from  this  mating  she  should  be  bred 
to  some  good  out-cross.  If  this  is  a  filly  you  can 
breed  to  Primo  again.  We  once  had  at  Village 
Farm  a  filly  (The  Silent  One),  by  Chimes,  dam 
Silent  Rose,  by  Mambrino  King,  grandam  Beat- 
tie  Chimes,  by  Chimes. 

FIRST   IMPRESSIONS. 

Almost  as  important  to  brood-mare  owners  as 
inbreeding  is  the  subject  of  first  impressions.  I 
have  very  often  found  that  a  mare's  first  foal  is 
her  best.  Without  attempting  to  discuss  the 
matter  statistically  or  scientifically  I  may  say  that 
the  majority  of  veterinarians  and  doctors  with 
whom  I  have  conversed  on  the  subject  believe  that 
the  impression  of  a  mare's  first  mating  is  stronger 
than  any  other ;  that,  therefore,  a  mare's  first  foal 
is  likely  to  be  her  best  one,  and  that  the  first  im- 
pression has  a  more  or  less  lasting  effect  on  the 


BREEDING   THE   TROTTER 

mare  and  her  subsequent  foals.  If  this  be  true 
a  brood-mare  owner  should  be  careful  to  breed 
his  virgin  mare  to  the  best  stallion  he  can  select. 
One  veterinarian  has  said  that,  all  other  things 
being  equal,  he  would  choose  the  mare  which  had 
been  first  covered  by  the  better  stallion.  It  is 
agreed  that  the  impression  is  a  nervous  and  not 
a  physical  one.  I  believe  one  reason  a  mare's 
first  foal  is  likely  to  be  better  than  her  others  is 
because  she  is  then  very  likely  to  be  in  better 
physical  condition  than  at  any  other  period  of  her 
existence.  The  better  health  the  mare  and  stal- 
lion enjoy  when  they  are  mated  the  healthier  and 
stronger  the  foal,  and  the  higher  type  horse  it  will 
become.  The  same  principle  is  true  with  refer- 
ence to  the  other  divisions  of  the  animal  kingdom. 
The  first  foal  of  Estabella,  one  of  my  favorite 
brood-mares,  was  Prince  Regent,  which  I  think 
would  have  been  one  of  the  greatest  sires  the  trot- 
ting world  ever  saw.  He  died  in  March,  1891,  as 
a  six-year-old,  just  before  the  stud  season.  Sixty- 
four  mares  had  been  booked  to  him  at  five  hun- 
dred dollars.  He  was  a  very  fast  horse  and  took 
his  record  of  2.16^,  beating  Pamlico  (2.10)  after 
a  stud  season.  Prince  Regent  was  an  equine 
king  and  an  impressive  individual,  either  at  rest 
or  while  walking,  jogging  or  racing. 

IMPORTANCE    OF    NATURAL   SPEED. 

In  connection  with  my  observations  on  breeding 
mares  I  might  say  that  in  my  experience  I  have 
found  that  the  great  matrons  almost  invariably 

99 


BREEDING   THE   TROTTER 

have  a  great  deal  of  natural  speed,  and  could  show 
it  in  the  paddock  if  frightened. 

Mr.  C.  J.  Hamlin  used  to  delight  in  seeing  Esta- 
bella  trot  in  the  paddock.  His  favorite  method 
of  inducing  horses  to  show  their  speed  in  the  pad- 
dock was  to  step  behind  them  and  open  and  shut 
a  large  umbrella  with  as  much  noise  and  flourish  as 
possible. 

I  remember  that  Miss  Russell,  the  dam  of  Maud 
S.  (2.08%)  and  Nutwood  (2.18%),  was  a  great  lot 
trotter.  Mr.  Hamlin  tried  to  purchase  her  at  one 
time  but  was  unsuccessful.  He  offered  ten  thou- 
sand dollars  for  a  two-year-old  full  sister  of  Maud 
S.  and  eight  thousand  dollars  for  the  full  sister  a 
year  younger. 

In  closing  this  chapter  I  might  say  that  I  do 
not  agree  with  some  of  the  old-time  authorities 
who  claimed  that  the  brood-mare  was  merely  a 
shell  in  which  to  raise  colts.  I  consider  her  part 
in  the  production  of  trotters  fully  as  important 
as  that  of  the  stallion. 


100 


Chapter  Six 
THE  WEANLING  AND  YEARLING 

Halter  Breaking. — Breaking  to  Bit. — Beside  a  Lead  Pony. 
—  Ground- Breaking. —  Hooking  to  Cart. —  Shoeing. — Develop- 
ing Muscles  and  Speed. — "  Dr.  Green." — A  Futurity  Can- 
didate.—  Feeding. —  The  Yearling. 

ONE  of  the  greatest  pleasures  of  a  trotting- 
horse  breeder  comes  when  the  time  arrives 
to    break    the    weanling    and    continues 
through  the  period  of  its  first  speed  development, 
for  in  this  way  and  in   this   way  only  can  the 
breeder  determine  his  success  or  failure. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  in  the  previous  chap- 
ter I  spoke  of  the  care  which  the  foal  should 
receive  from  birth  up  to  that  point  when  it  is  no 
longer  dependent  on  his  dam  and  is  called  a 
weanling. 

This  chapter  will  treat  of  its  care  and  atten- 
tion from  the  time  that  it  is  first  halter-broken 
until  it  is  technically  a  yearling. 

HALTER-BREAKING. 

After  the  colt  has  been  entirely  removed  from 
the  influence  of  its  mother  it  should  be  halter- 
broken. 

Prepare  for  the  colt  a  good,  strong,  five-ring 
leather  halter  and  put  it  on  carefully.  The  halter 

101 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

should  not  fit  too  tightly  nor  too  loosely  and 
should  be  kept  on  the  colt  till  time  to  harness- 
break  it. 

After  the  halter  has  been  placed  on  the  colt's 
head  snap  a  strong  leather  halter  strap  into  the 
lower  ring  of  the  halter.  This  strap  should  be 
one  and  one-quarter  inches  wide  and  two  and  one- 
half  feet  long.  Leave  this  hanging  to  the  halter 
so  that  you  can  enter  the  stall  at  any  time  and 
take  hold  of  the  colt  without  frightening  it.  As 
the  weanling  walks  around  the  stall,  and  when 
nibbling  at  the  hay,  it  will  step  on  the  halter  strap 
from  time  to  time  and  find  that  it  cannot  raise  its 
head.  In  this  way  the  colt  soon  learns  that  the 
halter  is  an  instrument  of  restraint.  When  the 
halter  has  remained  on  the  colt  for  about  a  week 
the  youngster  will  be  about  two-thirds  halter- 
broken.  Its  education  in  this  direction  may  then 
be  completed  by  leading  it  from  the  stall.  Ordi- 
narily you  will  find  the  colt  willing  to  go  anywhere 
you  lead  it. 

Some  men  halter-break  colts  in  the  open  with- 
out preliminary  wearing  of  the  halter  in  the  stall, 
but  I  do  not  approve  of  this.  I  have  seen  too 
many  colts  frightened  and  injured  by  rearing 
away  from  the  halter,  to  the  use  of  which  they 
have  not  become  accustomed. 

If  you  have  a  large  main  barn,  with  a  wide  hall- 
way, the  best  place  to  lead  a  colt,  after  it  has  worn 
a  halter  in  its  stall  for  a  week,  is  the  hallway  of 
the  barn.  The  attendant  should  lead  the  colt  up 
and  down  the  hallway  a  great  many  times.  When 

102 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

the  colt  does  this  quietly  it  may  be  led  around  a 
smooth  paddock.  In  time  the  colt  will  follow 
its  attendant  to  any  place. 

The  weanling,  at  all  times,  should  be  petted 
and  treated  kindly.  It  should  be  groomed  care- 
fully each  day  and  its  hair  straightened  out. 
This  will  give  it  a  healthy  coat,  make  it  feel  good 
and  assist  its  growth. 

BREAKING    TO    BIT. 

When  the  colt  is  six  months  old  procure  a  bridle 
that  fits  well  and  place  it  on  the  colt  in  the  stall, 
as  was  done  with  the  halter.  Use  a  snaffle  bit 
and  see  that  it  fits  properly,  otherwise  it  will  worry 
and  aggravate  the  colt.  The  bit  will  vary  in 
length  from  three  to  three  and  one-half  inches. 
Keep  the  bridle  on  the  colt  about  an  hour  and  a 
half,  both  morning  and  afternoon. 

When  it  becomes  accustomed  to  the  bit  in  the 
stall  the  colt  is  ready  for  the  colt  breaker. 

BESIDE   THE   LEAD   PONY. 

The  colt  should  first  be  led  to  halter  on  a  walk, 
by  a  competent  man,  beside  a  saddle  pony.  Half 
a  mile  is  long  enough  for  the  first  lesson.  This 
should  be  repeated  daily  for  about  a  week  or  till 
the  colt  becomes  accustomed  to  the  pony.  When 
this  work  commences  the  colt  should  be  turned 
out  about  an  hour  every  morning  if  the  weather 
is  fine. 

As  soon  as  leading  begins  the  colt  should  be 
properly  fitted  with  a  pair  of  light  shin  boots,  as 

103 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

protection  against  injuries  which  are  liable  to  pro- 
duce splints  and  which  have  laid  up  and  even 
retired  a  great  many  colts.  When  the  colt  is 
turned  out  I  advise  putting  shin  and  quarter  boots 
on  for  protection.  The  quarter  boots  used  in  the 
paddock  should  be  kept  for  this  purpose  only  and 
a  different  pair  used  in  training. 

The  following  week  the  colt  may  be  led  along 
on  a  slow  jog  and  for  a  short  distance  some  place 
in  the  half-mile  let  the  colt  move  along  nearly  as 
fast  as  it  will  go.  Be  sure  to  keep  the  colt  on  a 
trot  and  its  head  straight  with  the  body. 

If  by  this  time  the  colt  is  leading  nicely  and 
shows  promise  of  speed  I  would  advise  letting  up 
on  the  leading  for  a  while.  It  is  not  well  to  force 
the  colt  too  strenuously, 

GROUND-BREAKING. 

By  this  time  the  colt  will  be  approaching  seven 
months  of  age  and  it  should  then  be  broken  to 
harness. 

Procure  a  harness  that  will  fit  properly  and  keep 
it  on  the  colt  in  the  stall  from  thirty  minutes  to 
an  hour  each  day  till  the  youngster  becomes 
accustomed  to  the  strange  straps.  After  that 
the  colt  should  be  driven  along  the  barn  hallway 
or  in  a  smooth  paddock  till  he  is  thoroughly 
ground  broken  and  responds  to  words  of  com- 
mand, the  most  important  of  which  is  "  whoa." 
It  is  equally  important  that  the  colt  be  taught  to 
stand  still,  particularly  after  it  is  hitched.  It 
lessens  the  pleasure  of  ownership  when  you  stop 

104 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

in  the  road  to  talk  to  a  friend  to  find  your  horse 
so  restless  that  you  have  to  drive  on  and  postpone 
conversation  till  another  time.  The  colt  should 
be  taught  to  back  and  to  turn  either  to  right  or  to 
left  with  as  much  ease  as  when  going  forward.  A 
great  many  of  our  race-horses,  improperly  broken 
in  youth,  will  turn  only  in  one  direction. 

After  the  colt  is  thoroughly  ground-broken  pro- 
cure two  light  round  poles  twelve  or  fourteen  feet 
long  and  slip  them  through  the  shaft  holders  as 
though  they  were  shafts  of  a  cart.  Rub  these 
poles  along  the  sides  and  quarters  of  the  colt  until 
it  becomes  accustomed  to  them  and  shows  no  fear 
nor  excitement.  The  colt  is  now  ready  to  hook  up. 

HOOKING    TO    CART. 

I  do  not  approve  of  heavy  breaking  carts.  I 
advise  hooking  the  colt  to  a  light  cart  from  which 
one  can  descend  quickly.  Take  a  groom  along 
for  the  first  few  times,  as  his  assistance  will  be 
needed  in  case  of  emergency. 

Do  not  keep  the  colt  hooked  up  more  than 
thirty  or  forty  minutes  a  day  nor  drive  it  more 
than  a  mile  a  day. 

Drive  it  this  way  every  day  for  ten  or  twelve 
days,  by  which  time  the  colt  should  be  nicely 
broken. 

SHOEING. 

The  colt  is  now  ready  to  be  shod.  If  the  soil  is 
gravelly  shoes  may  become  necessary  before  the 
colt  is  thoroughly  broken.  As  to  shoeing  you 

105 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

must  use  your  own  judgment  or  consult  an  exper- 
ienced trainer  or  a  competent  blacksmith  ;  differ- 
ent colts  will  require  different  shoes.  The  natural- 
gaited  trotter  will  require  light  shoes ;  double- 
gaited  colts,  shoes  that  are  a  little  heavier.  Some 
colts  will  show  considerable  speed  without  shoes. 
Fantasy,  when  two  years  old,  trotted  a  quarter 
in  thirty-five  seconds  without  them. 

DEVELOPING   MUSCLES    AND    SPEED. 

After  the  colt  is  shod  if  it  is  doing  nicely  it  can 
be  brushed  for  a  sixteenth  or  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
each  day.  By  this  time  it  will  probably  need  a 
pair  of  quarter  boots  for  protection. 

The  colt  should  never  be  asked  to  do  all  it  can. 
Let  it  keep  a  little  reserve  speed.  This  will  en- 
courage the  youngster,  and  it  will  take  hold  more 
cheerfully,  and  will  improve  as  its  education 
progresses. 

When  the  colt  is  eight  months  old  go  back  to 
leading  in  addition  to  the  other  work.  Have  the 
colt  led  three  or  four  times  a  week  and  driven  two 
or  three  times. 

When  January  i  of  the  year  following  that  of 
its  foaling  arrives  the  colt  will  technically  become 
a  yearling. 

THE   YEARLING. 

By  the  time  the  colt  technically  becomes  a  year- 
ling its  muscles  and  speed  will  be  well  under  way 
of  development.  This  development  should  be 
continued  until  the  middle  of  May, 

106 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

METHOD    OF    DEVELOPING. 

Most  of  the  work  given  the  colt  should  be 
beside  a  lead  pony.  This  will  develop  its  speed 
more  quickly  than  when  hitched  to  cart  and  with- 
out the  attending  fatigue.  The  yearling  should 
be  driven  to  cart  some,  as  indicated,  in  order  to 
"  muscle  it  up  "  and  make  it  capable  of  pulling 
the  weight  it  will  have  to  draw  in  later  years. 

"  DR.    GREEN." 

Now  spring  has  come  and  the  grass  is  green  and 
the  colt  should  be  turned  out  to  graze  for  from 
fifteen  to  thirty  days.  "  Dr.  Green  "  is  the  best 
veterinarian  I  know  of — makes  the  best  "  speed 
elixir  "  for  a  colt.  After  the  vacation  is  over  the 
colt  should  be  taken  up  and  led  and  driven  alter- 
nately till  the  first  of  September.  The  colt  should 
be  turned  into  a  paddock  two  hours  each  after- 
noon. If  the  colt  is  sluggish  cut  down  on  its 
work  and  let  it  run  out  longer  each  day. 

A    FUTURITY    CANDIDATE. 

If  the  colt  looks  like  a  futurity  candidate  by 
September  i,  I  would  advise  that  leading  be 
stopped  and  all  work  after  that  be  to  harness. 

As  the  nights  become  cool,  say  during  Septem- 
ber and  October,  the  colt  will  improve  rapidly, 
in  fact  probably  so  much  it  will  surprise  you.  Do 
not  overdo  the  training,  for  the  colt,  above  all 
other  things,  should  never  be  over-trained. 

I  would  advise  you  to  let  up  on  the  colt  during 

107 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

November  and  December,  allowing  it  to  get  its 
exercise  in  the  paddocks. 

FEEDING. 

A  nice  feed  for  yearlings,  as  well  as  two-year- 
olds,  is  prepared  as  follows.  Boil  the  required 
amount  of  oats  and  let  them  steam  about  an  hour, 
and  then  mix  with  them  about  one-eighth  their 
quantity  of  good  winter  wheat-bran  and  about 
a  tablespoonful  of  linseed  meal  to  each  horse, 


108 


Chapter  Seven 
THE   TWO-YEAR-OLD   AND   OLDER 

Winter  Work. — Spring  Work. — Summer  Work. —  Turning 
Over  to  a  Trainer. —  Use  of  Bandages  and  Washes. — Packing 
of  Feet. — Aged  Horses. 

rr^HE  care  of  the  two-year-olds  and  colts  of 
older  ages  is  so  nearly  alike  that,  except 
where  noted,  the  advice  herein  can  be  ap- 
plied to  all  ages. 

WINTER   WORK. 

We  left  the  colt  in  December  of  its  yearling 
form.  In  January  of  its  two-year-old  form  take  it 
up  and  jog  it  carefully. 

If,  during  the  winter,  sleighing  is  good,  jog  to 
sleigh  and,  without  warming  it  up  too  much,  let  it 
brush  along,  say  a  quarter  of  a  mile.  The  young- 
ster will  enjoy  this  and  the  practice  will  materi- 
ally develop  its  muscles  and  speed. 

During  the  early  winter  of  its  two-year-old  form 
you  should  have  your  mind  made  up  as  to  whether 
the  colt  is  a  "  colt  trotter  "  or  whether  it  should 
be  prepared  for  the  market.  If  you  decide  it  will 
not  pay  to  train  the  colt  any  longer  the  best  thing 
to  do  is  to  sell,  in  which  event  I  refer  you  to  the 
following  chapter  on  preparing  for  the  sales  and 
the  show  rings.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  you  think 

109 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

the  colt  will  make  a  good  race-horse  as  a  five-year- 
old,  turn  it  out  till  the  fall  of  the  year  it  is  coming 
four  years  old,  when  it  should  be  taken  up  again 
and  turned  over  to  a  trainer.  During  this  period 
the  colt  should  be  well  looked  after  and  not 
neglected. 

SPRING  WORK. 

To  return  to  the  two-year-old,  carry  the  colt 
along  with  jog  work  till  about  March  i  when  the 
roads  will  break  up  and  spring  arrive.  I  would 
advise  giving  the  colt  a  nice  long  jog  about  four 
times  a  week. 

I  would  let  up  on  the  colt  the  first  of  March  and 
turn  it  out  in  the  paddock  for  about  a  month. 
See  that  it  is  well  looked  after.  After  the  vaca- 
tion I  advise  taking  the  colt  up  and  jogging  it  for 
from  three  to  four  weeks,  preparatory  to  track 
work. 

Late  in  April  or  early  in  May  the  weather  will 
be  fine,  the  road  and  track  in  good  condition,  and 
spring — a  beautiful  time  of  the  year — is  with  us. 
The  colt  will  really  ask  to  go,  will  want  to  go,  and 
the  impatient  trainer,  after  the  tedious  winter,  is 
usually  anxious  to  let  it  go.  This  is  the  time 
when  the  impatience  of  horse  and  driver  should 
be  restrained.  Go  slow  with  the  colt  and  keep  it 
well  within  itself.  The  colt  may  be  worked  on  the 
track  with  short  brushes  at  speed.  During  the 
latter  part  of  May  or  early  in  June  the  colt  may 
be  driven  very  slow  miles,  allowing  it  to  step 
through  the  stretch  at  the  last  end. 

no 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

I  do  not  advise  repeating  the  colt  before  June  1 5 
or  20.  I  would  then  begin  to  repeat  it  slow  miles, 
with  the  last  half  the  faster  and  with  a  brush  at 
the  end,  but  never  drive  the  colt  to  its  limit. 

SUMMER    WORK. 

About  July  i  the  colt  is,  or  should  be,  in  nice, 
strong  condition,  with  hardened  and  well-seasoned 
legs.  It  is  now  ready  for  work  a  little  more 
severe  and  for  faster  repeats.  If  the  colt  is  speedy 
and  is  making  speed  each  successive  repeat  should 
be  faster,  dropping  from  two  to  four  seconds 
every  work-out. 

By  August  the  owner  and  trainer  should  be  able 
to  judge  from  the  speed  shown  in  the  last  quarters 
or  halves  of  work-out  miles  whether  they  have  a 
colt  good  enough  to  win  a  portion  of  the  money 
offered  in  the  futurities. 

If  the  colt  as  a  two-year-old  is  not  good  enough 
it  should  be  turned  out  about  September  i  and 
carried  over  another  year.  Take  off  its  shoes  and 
rasp  down  its  feet  before  turning  it  out.  The  colt 
should  be  taken  in  and  fed  each  day  as  usual  and 
may  be  kept  out  over  night  if  the  weather  is  good. 
After  running  out  a  month  the  colt  should  be 
taken  up  and  jogged  the  balance  of  the  fall.  This 
is  a  good  time  to  work  on  its  feet  and  legs  if  they 
are  the  least  bit  sore  or  off  in  any  way. 

TURNING    OVER   TO    A    TRAINER. 

If  the  owner  thinks  his  colt  will  do  for  the 
futurities  he  should  turn  his  candidate  over  to  the 

in 


BREEDING   THE   TROTTER 

best  driver  of  colts  he  can  afford,  if  he  has  not 
already  done  so.  Many  fast  colts  have  been 
spoiled  by  cheap  trainers  who  were  thought  well 
of  by  their  employers,  because  they  were  nice 
fellows  and  good  dressers.  After  the  experienced 
trainer  gets  the  colt  it  is  useless  to  advise  as  to  its 
training.  No  person  can  lay  down  rules  that  will 
fit  all  cases  and  the  writer  does  not  intend  to  try 
the  experiment. 

USE  OF  BANDAGES  AND  WASHES. 

Of  course  I  have  opinions  on  certain  points  in 
training  colts,  which  apply  to  all  cases.  For 
instance,  I  am  opposed  to  the  constant  use  of 
bandages  unless  absolutely  necessary.  I  do  not 
believe  in  washes,  unless  just  after  a  race.  If  the 
groom  would  spend  as  much  time  rubbing  the  legs 
as  he  does  in  applying  liniments  and  lotions  the 
horse  would  be  much  better  off. 

PACKING   OF   FEET. 

I  attach  considerable  importance  to  the  proper 
packing  of  horse's  feet  and  have  obtained  the  best 
results  from  blue  clay.  If  this  be  too  expensive 
or  hard  to  get  use  linseed  meal  and  bran,  propor- 
tions two-thirds  meal  to  one-third  bran,  mixed 
with  warm  water.  The  very  worst  possible  pack- 
ing, but  one  now  seldom  used,  is  cow  manure. 

The  programme  as  outlined  in  this  chapter  is 
the  one  used  in  developing  all  the  Village  Farm 
horses.  Many  of  them  afterwards  became  cham- 
pions and  raced  and  stayed  sound  for  years. 

112 


BREEDING   THE   TROTTER 

AGED    HORSES. 

I  will  give  no  advice  on  the  care  of  aged  race- 
horses because  that  is  a  matter  which  should  be 
left  to  the  horse's  trainer.  Aged  horses  will  be 
carried  through  the  winter  with  jog  work  very 
much  the  same  as  two-year-olds  and  three-year- 
olds  except  that  they  should  be  jogged  longer  dis- 
tances, say  from  four  to  seven  miles,  as  mentioned 
in  connection  with  stallions.  Right  here  I  might 
advise  especial  care  being  given  a  horse  in  its  four- 
year-old  form.  Very  few  horses  are  at  their  best 
then,  perhaps  partly  because  of  shedding  more 
teeth  at  that  age  than  at  any  other  time.  One  of 
the  most  important  things  in  caring  for  a  horse  is 
to  see  that  its  teeth  are  well  looked  after.  A  com- 
petent man  should  examine  all  of  your  horses  once 
a  year,  either  in  December  or  January. 

The  colt  that  was  not  thought  fast  enough  to 
start  in  the  futurities  may,  when  it  reaches  five 
years,  be  fast  enough  to  race  in  stakes  or  classes, 
in  which  event  it  may  be  expected  to  show  con- 
siderable promise  in  its  four-year-old  form  and 
should  be  given  special  preparation.  This  prepa- 
ration, if  correctly  given,  should  leave  the  horse 
clean  and  sound.  It  will  have  had  considerable 
fast  work,  even  up  to  full  miles,  but  it  must  not 
be  trained  to  death,  and  should  have  a  lot  of  fast 
miles  left  in  it  to  use  later  on  to  get  the  money  with. 

It  is  significant  that  only  a  small  proportion  of 
the  horses  that  have  been  trained  with  a  view  of 
giving  them  fast  trials  in  the  fall  previous  to  their 
prospective  Grand  Circuit  campaign  have  reached 


BREEDING   THE   TROTTER 

the  races.  It  would  have  been  much  better  to 
have  given  them  many  miles  a  little  slower  so  that 
they  would  have  been  well  muscled  up  for  the  stiff 
preparation  of  the  spring.  Such  a  course  lessens 
the  number  of  cripples  that  have  to  be  shipped 
home,  much  to  the  disgust  of  the  owners,  trainers 
and  friends  of  both.  No  horse  should  be  worked 
excessively  during  the  winter.  It  keeps  him 
keyed  up  too  long.  Remember,  however,  that 
long  jogs,  while  they  muscle  up  a  horse,  do  not 
develop  its  speed ;  only  brush  work  does  that,  so 
the  proper  combination  of  both  is  necessary. 

While  speaking  of  horse  racing  I  might  mention 
a  fact  that  is  not  emphasized  enough.  Many 
horses  are  prepared  for  races  in  which  it  is  not 
thought  they  can  win,  but  in  which  it  is  expected 
they  can  easily  win  second  or  third  money.  As  a 
matter  of  fact  the  second  or  third  horses  often 
have  a  harder  time  winning  and  have  more  of 
their  vitality  sapped  than  the  winner.  Usually 
the  winner  goes  no  faster  than  it  is  forced,  whereas 
the  horse  finishing  second  has  probably  through- 
out the  mile  been  struggling  either  to  defeat  the 
first  horse  or  to  withstand  the  rush  of  the  third. 
Then,  again,  a  horse  that  wins  can  often  be  saved 
a  little  at  different  points  in  the  mile  whereas  the 
majority  of  the  horses  behind  are  constantly 
struggling  to  better  their  places. 

Just  a  closing  paragraph  of  advice  to  the  owner 
of  a  horse  in  training.  Never  ask  your  trainer 
to  show  you  as  fast  a  mile  with  your  horse  as  he 
can  go.  He  may  need  that  mile  in  a  race  sometime. 


Chapter  Eight 


PREPARING  FOR  THE  SALES  AND 
THE  SHOW  RINGS 


Avoid  Over- Production. —  The  Best  Age  at  Which  to  Sell. — 
Preparing  for  Sales. — Culls. — Show  Horses. — Preparing  for 
Shows. — Incidentals. 


OF  course  it  is  next  to  impossible  for  any 
breeder  to  retain  every  colt  he  raises.     In 
time   the   largest   farm  will  become  over 
stocked.     It    is    necessary,     therefore,    for    the 
breeder  to  sell  a  certain  number  of  colts  each 
year.     This  may  be  done  either  by  private  sale 
or  at  public  auction.     Most  will  prefer  the  latter 
method  because  the  market  is  already  provided 
and  each  horse  is  sold  for  what  the  public,  and  not 
one  man,  thinks  it  is  worth. 

THE   BEST   AGE   AT   WHICH   TO   SELL. 

It  has  already  been  mentioned  that  the  best  age 
at  which  to  sell  horses  is  either  in  the  fall  before 
they  are  two  years  old  or  in  the  spring  after  they 
become  that  age.  This  assertion  is  made  after  an 
extended  experience  in  selling  colts  at  all  ages. 
The  average  twoyear-old  can  be  sold  at  a  maxi- 

"5 


BREEDING   THE   TROTTER 

mum  price  for  a  minimum  expense.  Colts  at  this 
age  not  only  appeal  to  the  professional  horsemen, 
anxious  to  secure  futurity  prospects,  but  also  to 
the  amateurs  who  like  to  try  their  hands  at  devel- 
oping speed,  particularly  young  business  men 
who  wish  to  fuss  around  horses  as  a  recreation 
after  office  hours. 

PREPARING    FOR   SALES. 

In  conditioning  colts  for  sales  they  cannot  be 
too  well  broken.  It  somewhat  enhances  the  value 
of  a  colt  to  be  broken  to  double  harness,  but  that 
is  not  difficult  because  a  colt  well  broken  to  single 
harness  will  drive  double. 

The  colt  should  be  in  the  best  possible  physical 
condition. 

I  advise  by  all  means  to  give  the  sale  colt  its 
preliminary  exercise  beside  a  lead  pony,  in  which 
manner  also  it  should  be  shown  in  the  ring.  The 
best-bred  and  best-looking  colt  in  the  world  will 
not  bring  its  full  value  in  the  auction  ring  if  it 
cannot  show  a  promise  of  speed  commensurate 
with  its  breeding  and  individuality.  A  colt  will 
show  more  speed  in  the  sale  ring  beside  a  pony 
than  in  any  other  way. 

When  the  colt  is  ready  to  be  sold  it  should  be 
shown  by  an  experienced  and  competent  man. 
A  green  colt  and  a  green  exhibitor  make  a  bad 
combination  which  often  results  in  a  colt  bringing 
only  half  its  value.  The  sale  ring  is  no  place  to 
curtail  expenses. 

116 


BREEDING   THE   TROTTER 

CULLS. 

Almost  every  farm  has  a  few  "  culls."  I  would 
not  advise  sending  them  to  a  public  auction.  It 
hurts  the  sale  business  by  lowering  averages,  and 
it  hurts  your  farm's  reputation,  also  the  reputa- 
tion of  the  blood  lines  you  are  propagating.  Culls 
can  usually  be  disposed  of  to  advantage  among 
the  farmers  of  your  neighborhood,  who  will  use 
them  as  general-purpose  horses. 

SHOW    HORSES. 

Now,  as  to  show  horses,  if  you  have  followed 
out  the  advice  as  to  combining  beauty  and  speed 
you  will  have  some  show  horses  with  which  you 
should  take  pride  in  demonstrating  your  success 
to  the  world. 

PREPARING    FOR    SHOWS. 

The  show  horse  should  have  still  better 
attention  than  the  sale  horse.  He  should  be  thor- 
oughly broken,  with  the  best  of  manners  in  stable 
and  ring,  should  be  in  the  finest  possible  condi- 
tion, in  fact,  be  as  near  perfection  as  it  is  possible 
for  you  to  make  him.  One  of  the  important 
things  to  teach  a  show  horse  is,  to  stick  to  a  pure 
gait  at  all  times,  regardless  of  short  turns,  bad 
footing  and  the  excitement  around  the  ring- 
side. 

Your  horses  should  be  shown  by  the  best  man 
that  you  can  afford  to  engage. 

117 


BREEDING   THE   TROTTER 

INCIDENTALS. 

Considerable  attention  should  be  paid  to  the 
fittings.  Have  the  best  of  harness,  leading  rigs 
and  good,  competent  grooms,  all  dressed  alike  in 
whatever  colors  you  select. 

I  think  all  exhibitors  in  the  show  ring  should  be 
placed  on  an  equal  footing  and  all  be  made  to 
show  in  one  way.  The  best  way  to  show  a  horse 
in  the  ring  is  beside  a  saddle  pony.  It  gives  the 
best  satisfaction  to  exhibitor,  association,  judges 
and  public. 

Whatever  you  do,  do  not  go  to  the  show  ring 
unprepared,  for  you  will  come  away  dissatisfied 
and  will  probably  lay  blame  on  the  association 
and  judges  which  you  yourself  should  shoulder. 

Take  your  medicine  like  a  gentleman.  Sooner 
or  later  you  will  win  ribbons  enough  to  make  you 
forget  all  your  troubles. 


118 


Chapter  Nine 
MANAGEMENT  OF  A  STOCK  FARM 

Business  Principles. —  The  Superintendent.- — The  Trainer. 
—  Grooms. — Sources  of  Revenue. — Advertising  and  Cata- 
logues.— Breeding  Records. — Causes  of  Failures. — Sources 
of  Waste. 

rr*VEHS  chapter  will  be  written  for  the  benefit 

of  the  gentleman  who  has  founded  a  stock 

farm  of  considerable   size,    although  the 

advice  and  suggestions  may  be  put  to  practice 

by  him  who  breeds  on  a  smaller  scale. 

I  will  suppose  that  the  reader  is  the  owner  of  a 
farm  laid  out  as  directed  in  chapter  three.  Con- 
siderable money,  doubtless,  has  been  spent  on  the 
establishment. 

BUSINESS    PRINCIPLES. 

Even  if  it  has  been  founded  for  pleasure  alone, 
the  farm  should  be  conducted  on  business  prin- 
ciples and,  if  possible,  made  to  pay  expenses. 
When  one  comes  out  before  the  trotting  world  as 
a  breeder,  he  is  entering  a  field  which  contains 
some  of  the  smartest  and  shrewdest  business  men 
in  the  country.  In  fact,  if  some  horsemen  who 
follow  the  business  professionally  had  devoted  a 
like  amount  of  attention  to  commercial  pursuits 
they  would  have  made  fortunes  for  themselves. 

119 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

THE    SUPERINTENDENT* 

If  you  have  founded  a  large  farm  or  are  about 
to  do  so,  the  first  thing  for  you  to  do  is  to  secure 
your  superintendent.  He  will  be  hard  to  select, 
although,  when  it  becomes  known  that  you  intend 
embarking  in  the  breeding  business,  you  will  hear 
from  many  who  on  their  own  letter  paper  look  to 
be  entirely  competent. 

The  superintendent  should  be  competent  to 
take  full  charge  of  the  property  and  be  the  sole 
manager  thereof,  except  that  he  should  be  ex- 
pected to  report  to  the  proprietor  once  or  twice  a 
week  and  be  guided  in  important  details  by  the 
latter's  suggestions. 

Right  here  a  word  to  superintendents  :  Do 
not  make  a  great,  long,  tiresome  report  to  the 
proprietor,  but  condense  things  so  that  the 
details  will  not  bother  him.  At  the  same  time, 
nothing  of  importance  should  ever  be  kept  from 
him. 

The  superintendent  should  have  a  thorough 
and  practical  knowledge  of  all  details  pertain- 
ing to  the  raising  of  stock  and  be  able  to  handle 
things  in  a  business-like  manner.  Among  other 
details,  the  superintendent  will  be  expected  to 
oversee  the  breeding  of  mares,  assisting  mares  to 
foal,  breaking  and  training  colts,  and  developing 
speed.  He  should  also  have  a  practical  knowl- 
edge of  farming  in  order  to  know  that  the  depart- 
ment which  should  be  in  charge  of  a  head  fa 
is  running  properly.  The  "  kid-gloved  "  super- 

120 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

intendent,  or  the  one  continually  running  to  town, 
will  not  prove  very  successful  on  a  large  stock 
farm. 

The  superintendent,  in  addition  to  understand- 
ing about  the  breeding  of  mares,  should  know 
how  to  keep  breeding  records,  forms  of  which  were 
given  in  chapter  four. 

The  superintendent  should  make  a  thorough 
inspection  of  the  farm  once  a  day,  twice  is  better, 
and  see  that  everything  is  being  done  right  and 
that  every  animal  is  properly  cared  for  and 
watered  and  fed  regularly. 

The  superintendent  should  be  the  handiest  all- 
around  man  on  the  farm  and  he  who  is  the  most 
successful  will  be  the  first  up  in  the  morning  and 
the  last  to  leave  the  stables  at  night. 

A  thorough  knowledge  of  brood-mares  is  indis- 
pensable to  the  superintendent,  especially  when 
a  mare  needs  assistance  in  foaling  hours  before  a 
veterinarian  can  arrive.  Some  large  farms  have 
a  veterinarian  in  their  employ,  but  if  the  super- 
intendent is  of  the  right  sort  this  large  item  of 
expense  may  be  cancelled. 

The  superintendent  should  understand  enough 
about  the  development  of  speed  to  be  able  to 
break  and  train  colts  till  they  are  old  enough  to 
be  turned  over  to  a  trainer.  Every  colt,  if  care- 
fully handled,  will  be  turned  over  to  the  trainer, 
sound,  clean-limbed  and  otherwise  uninjured. 

The  superintendent's  duties,  while  arduous, 
offer  the  interested  man  much  satisfaction  in 
viewing  the  results  of  his  handiwork. 

121 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  I  do  not  think  any 
superintendent  can  run  a  farm  by  sitting  in  the 
parlor  of  his  house  or  in  his  farm  office,  or  in  run- 
ning about  the  country. 

The  superintendent's  first  duty  on  taking 
charge  of  a  stock  farm  is  to  see  that  he  has  as 
efficient  a  corps  of  workers  under  him  as  it  is  pos- 
sible for  him  to  secure,  according  to  local  condi- 
tions. 

It  will  be  unnecessary  to  outline  in  detail  the 
duties  of  a  superintendent.  A  competent  man 
will  understand  that  for  himself,  and  it  is  to  be 
supposed  that  the  owner  has  chosen  an  ideal  man 
for  the  ideal  farm  outlined. 

I  might  mention  here  that  the  owner  need  not 
be  surprised  to  receive  letters  from  the  employees 
at  the  farm,  "knocking"  the  busy  superintend- 
ent. That  seems  to  be  a  favorite  method  with 
incompetent  men  whom  the  superintendent  has 
to  chastise.  If  such  men  fear  to  write  the  pro- 
prietor they  will  try  to  reach  his  ear  while  on  a 
visit  to  the  farm  and  will  unwind  a  long  yarn  in 
regard  to  a  supposed  mismanagement  of  the  farm. 
Such  things  will  naturally  cause  the  owner  to 
worry  and  he  will  wonder  whether  or  not  he  has 
the  right  man  in  the  right  place.  He  will  find, 
in  most  cases,  the  "  knockers  "  are  dissatisfied 
employees.  The  majority  of  farm  proprietors 
are  business  men  enough  to  be  able  to  tell  if  the 
farm  is  being  rightly  managed,  without  consult- 
ing the  grooms. 

A  farm  about  which  everything  is  kept  neat, 

122 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

clean  and  tidy  is  usually  a  well-managed  one.  It 
does  not  need  an  expert  to  decide  whether  the 
stock  is  in  good  shape,  whether  the  colts  are  act- 
ing right  or  whether  they  are  being  properly 
trained  and  developed. 

The  monthly  statement  will  show  whether  or 
not  the  superintendent  is  trying  to  make  a  busi- 
ness success  of  the  venture. 

The  superintendent  should  be  held  responsible 
for  the  details  of  breaking  and  developing  the 
colts  and  when  fall  comes  he  and  the  colt  trainers 
should  be  able  to  turn  some  promising  material 
over  to  the  speed  department,  without  resorting 
to  excuses. 

The  competent  superintendent  does  not  need 
to  use  such  excuses  as,  "the  track  wasn't  good," 
"  there  was  a  great  deal  of  rainy  weather,"  "  your 
family  of  horses  is  not  the  right  kind  to  produce 
speed,"  etc. 

As  before  mentioned,  the  superintendent  should 
at  all  times  consult  the  proprietor  and  take  pleas- 
ure in  showing  him  all  the  stock  at  all  times, 
keeping  nothing  away  from  him. 

The  proprietor  should,  in  return,  if  he  has  se- 
lected the  right  man,  never  hesitate  to  seek  advice 
from  his  superintendent,  rather  than  from  the 
many  outsiders,  some  of  them  personal  friends, 
always  willing  to  offer  it.  The  proprietor  should 
at  all  times  evince  an  interest  in  his  stock.  It  is 
not  very  encouraging  for  a  superintendent  and 
other  employees  to  work  on  a  farm  where  their 
efforts  do  not  interest  the  proprietor, 

123 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

The  bank  account  should  be  jealously  guarded 
by  the  superintendent,  who  should  make  every 
effort  to  show  that  he  is  interested  in  keeping 
expenses  down  without  being  penurious.  There 
is  such  a  thing  as  being  too  economical  on  a  farm 
which  is  expected  to  turn  out  a  great  stable  of  suc- 
cessful race-horses  to  help  pay  the  running  ex- 
penses of  the  farm. 

Never  be  afraid  to  pay  a  competent  man,  be  he 
superintendent,  trainer,  colt-breeder  or  groom,  a 
good  fair  salary.  Such  a  man  is  cheaper  to  the 
proprietor  than  an  incompetent  man  who  will 
work  for  little  or  nothing. 

THE   TRAINER. 

When  the  training  department  outgrows  the 
superintendent,  it  will  be  necessary  to  place  it  in 
charge  of  a  trainer,  the  selection  of  which  is  an 
important  step,  particularly  since  the  reputation 
of  the  farm  depends  on  him  to  a  considerable 
degree. 

In  this  connection  I  am  going  to  quote  portions 
of  a  letter  of  advice  I  once  wrote  a  trainer.  It 
explains  itself. 

'  Your  kind  letter  received  and  at  your  request 
I  will  give  you  my  views.  Yes,  I  fully  agree  with 
you  that  your  colts  have  done  remarkably  well  in 
their  work,  a  great  deal  better  than  I  expected, 
but  that  is  one  of  the  reasons  you  should  be  care- 
ful. ...  I  have  a  deep  interest  in  you  and  am 
anxious  to  see  you  at  the  top  of  the  ladder.  You 
have  mastered  the  profession  in  training  young 

124 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

horses.  In  my  mind  you  are  one  of  the  best 
developers  of  speed  that  there  is  in  this  country. 
...  I  think  you  may  be  hurrying  the  prepara- 
tion and  making  too  much  speed  in  a  short  time. 
.  .  .  Now,  my  boy,  above  all  things,  keep  them 
sound.  Look  them  over  every  morning  after  you 
have  worked  them  and  if  you  see  the  least  little 
thing,  I  should  certainly  stop  and  go  a  little 
slower.  .  .  .  You  have  as  good  material,  in  my 
opinion,  as  there  is  in  this  country  or  any  other 
country.  You  have  everything  to  work  with,  or 
if  not,  you  had  better  get  it.  You  have  your  own 
help  and  if  you  have  not  good  help  you  had  better 
get  it.  ...  I  wish  to  call  your  attention  to  the 

fact  that  the •-  Farm  now  hinges  on  you. 

You  will  either  go  down  as  not  smart  enough  to 
develop  and  get  a  stable  of  horses  ready  for  the 
Grand  Circuit  or  you  will  be  on  the  top  of  the  heap 

in  _  m  m  t  m     if  yOU  accomplish  what  I  have 

mapped  out  in  my  mind,  you  will  be  one  of  the 
most  prominent  trainers  in  America,  and  the 
-  Farm  will  be  one  of  the  most  promi- 
nent stock  farms  in  the  country.  If  you  fail  I 
need  not  tell  you  the  rest.  There  are  more  re- 
porters anxious  to  write  about  failures,  free  of 
expense,  than  there  are  to  write  a  boost,  unless 
paid  for  it.  Now,  all  you  have  to  do  is — plan  far 
enough  ahead  and  work  early  and  late  to  accom- 
plish your  ends." 

After  engaging  a  trainer,  which  will  probably 
be  on  a  one,  two,  three,  or  five  year  contract,  sal- 
ary payable  monthly,  it  is  up  to  the  proprietor  to 

125 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

give  the  trainer  every  opportunity  to  develop  the 
speed  of  his  colts.  See  that  he  is  amply  provided 
with  sulkies,  carts,  harness,  boots  and  other 
equipment. 

GROOMS. 

Good  grooms  are  a  necessity  on  a  farm  and 
their  worth  is  now  recognized  more  than  ever, 
for  they  are  receiving  larger  salaries  to-day  than 
ever  before,  to  my  knowledge.  Grooms  deserve 
a  great  deal  of  credit.  They  have  a  pretty  hard 
life  and  some  receive  small  pay  for  the  responsi- 
bility resting  upon  them.  Many  business  men 
who  would  not  trust  their  clerks  to  carry  ten 
thousand  dollars  unless  guarded  by  a  detective 
will  place  a  ten  thousand  dollar  horse  in  charge 
of  an  incompetent  man  because  he  is  cheap. 

The  groom  should  take  pride  enough  in  himself 
and  the  impression  the  farm  makes  on  visitors  to 
appear  as  neat  as  possible  about  the  stables.  He 
should  never  leave  his  horses  when  they  need 
attention.  He  should  no  more  think  of  running 
to  town  to  a  saloon  or  playing  cards  or  shooting 
dice  than  would  the  cashier  of  a  bank.  If  a  groom 
takes  no  pride  in  appearance  on  the  farm,  he 
should  at  least  do  so  on  the  race-track.  Nothing 
gives  a  stable  of  horses  on  a  race-track  a  cleaner 
appearance  than  well-dressed,  gentlemanly-look- 
ing grooms.  Every  man  on  a  stock  farm  should  be 
up  at  five  o'clock  in  order  to  have  the  morning 
feeding  completed  by  breakfast  time,  after  which 
the  work  of  the  day  will  require  the  attention  of  all. 

126 


BREEDING   THE   TROTTER 

SOURCES    OF    REVENUE. 

The  two  chief  sources  of  revenue  on  a  stock 
farm  are  the  racing  stable  and  the  stallions.  The 
success  of  the  former  depends  on  so  many  contin- 
gencies that  the  latter  generally  prove  the  surest 
means  of  income. 

Unless  the  stallions  are  being  reserved  for  pri- 
vate use,  it  will  be  the  superintendent's  duty  to 
use  every  effort  to  attract  public  patronage  to 
them. 

ADVERTISING    AND    CATALOGUES. 

If  your  stallions  are  worth  advertising  at  all 
they  are  worth  advertising  well,  and  space  should 
be  contracted  for  in  the  principal  turf  papers.  It 
is  generally  advisable  to  issue  yearly  catalogues 
of  your  stock  to  mail  to  prospective  patrons  and 
purchasers.  A  tastily  arranged  catalogue,  statis- 
tically correct,  is  a  great  advertisement  for  a 
stock  farm  and  will  receive  the  support  of  the 
turf  press  because  it  makes  it  easy  for  the  writers 
to  look  up  the  breeding  of  your  stock  when  occa- 
sion requires. 

BREEDING    RECORDS. 

To  make  the  breeding  department  a  success  it 
is  imperative  that  the  records  be  properly  kept 
and  in  such  a  manner  that,  in  case  the  superin- 
tendent is  absent  through  illness,  any  other  com- 
petent man  may  refer  to  the  records  and  run 
things  till  the  superintendent's  return.  Blank 
forms  for  a  trial  sheet,  breeding  certificates,  etc., 
were  given  in  chapter  four. 

127 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

System  is  as  necessary  on  a  stock  farm  as  in  an 
office  or  a  bank,  perhaps  more  so. 

CAUSES    OF    FAILURES. 

If  the  proprietor  has  selected  the  right  stock 
and  has  employed  the  right  trainer,  he  will  in  a 
few  years  be  listed  with  the  prominent  farms  of 
the  country.  If  not,  he  had  better  sell  out  and 
start  over  again,  rather  than  continue  with  a 
failure. 

If  you  need  any  excuse  for  selling,  one  of  the 
following  well-worn  ones  may  do  :  "  My  health 
is  not  good.  I  must  give  up  my  farm."  "  I  con- 
template taking  a  trip  to  Europe."  "  My  busi- 
ness is  such  I  cannot  afford  to  give  up  so  much 
time  to  the  details  of  a  stock  farm,"  etc. 

Stock-farm  failures  are  generally  due  to  extrav- 
agant methods,  or  a  failure  to  select  the  right 
stallion  or  the  right  brood-mares. 

SOURCES    OF    WASTE. 

Among  the  sources  of  waste  on  a  stock  farm  are 
feed  and  bedding.  These  items  are  especially 
large  in  the  stable  at  the  races  and  the  trainer 
should  economize  whenever  possible. 

Feed  for  the  farm  should  be  purchased  in  large 
quantities  at  a  time  of  year  when  markets  are 
lowest.  On  large  farms  where  not  enough  oats 
are  raised  to  supply  stock,  it  should  be  bought  by 
carloads ;  bran  the  same  way ;  other  food  stuff  in 
proportion. 

Bedding  runs   into   money   very   quickly  and 

128 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

grooms  should  be  instructed  to  avoid  waste.  It 
should  be  well  shaken  up  after  removing  from  the 
stalls  and  when  dried  may  be  used  again.  The 
balance  will  be  deposited  in  the  manure  pile. 
Manure  piles  should  be  kept  tidy  and  some  dis- 
tance from  the  barn.  Every  day  or  two,  or  at 
least  not  longer  than  once  a  week,  the  manure 
should  be  carted  to  the  fields. 

After  the  bedding  has  been  removed  from  the 
stalls,  they  should  be  swept  up  clean  and  well 
aired  beside  being  disinfected  with  some  good 
disinfectant.  My  choice  is  slaked  lime,  next  choice 
Sanitas.  Such  treatment  will  keep  the  stalls  in 
sanitary  condition,  will  kill  the  ammonia  and 
make  the  barn  smell  sweet.  The  stalls  should  be 
disinfected  once  a  week,  and  in  the  spring  and 
fall,  if  weather  is  damp,  twice  a  week,  or  oftener 
if  necessary. 


129 


Chapter  Ten 
CARE    OF   THE    FEET    AND    TEETH 

Care  of  Feet. —  Young  Colts. — Corns. —  The  Perfect  Hoof. — 
Ring-Bone. — After  the  Races. —  Thrush. — Care  of  the  Teeth. 

TWO  of  the  important  details  in  connection 
with  the  management  of  a  stock  farm  are 
the  care  of  the  horse's  feet  and  teeth.    The 
subject  is  so  important  in  my  estimation,   that  it 
is  worthy  of  a  separate  chapter. 

The  old  remark,  "  No  foot,  no  horse,"  is  a  very 
true  one  and  applies  to  every  horse  on  the  farm. 

CARE    OF    FEET. 

The  stallion  should  be  shod  every  thirty  days 
in  order  to  keep  his  feet  level  and  the  heels  wide 
enough  to  prevent  contraction. 

The  brood-mares  should  be  gone  over  carefully 
every  April  and  their  feet  trimmed,  leveled  and 
rounded  up.  This  should  be  done  again  in  August 
and  in  December. 

The  feet  of  the  colts  and  horses  in  training 
should  be  regularly  cared  for  as  necessity  demands. 

YOUNG    COLTS. 

If  the  feet  of  young  colts  are  not  properly 
looked  after  it  will  be  found  that  in  ninety-eight 
per  cent  of  them  the  inside  quarters  of  the  front 
feet  are  narrower  than  the  outside ;  and  in  ninety 

130 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

per  cent  the  outside  quarters  of  the  hind  feet  will 
be  narrower  than  the  inside.  I  think  the  reason 
for  this  is  because  of  the  position  young  foals  take 
in  sucking,  which  retards  the  circulation  of  the 
blood  on  the  inside  of  the  front  feet  and  on  the 
outside  of  the  hind  feet. 

The  foal's  feet  should  be  leveled  when  it  is  from 
ten  to  fifteen  days  old.  The  hoof  will  be  soft  and 
tender  and  may  be  trimmed  with  a  jackknife. 
This  treatment  should  be  continued  till  the  colt 
is  about  four  months  old,  when  the  inside  and 
outside  quarters  should  be  of  the  same  width. 
This  will  prevent  corns. 

CORNS. 

It  is  "a  mistaken  idea  that  unshod  colts  never 
have  corns.  I  have  often  seen  them  with  corns 
and  with  contracted  heels. 

Imperfect  feet  are  often  a  peculiarity  of  cer- 
tain families.  Some  families  are  predisposed  to 
high  heels,  others  to  low. 

If  the  feet  of  the  colts  received  closer  attention 
we  would  have  fewer  knee-knockers  and  horses 
that  toe  out  or  toe  in.  I  would  rather  have  one 
colt  that  toes  in  than  ten  that  toe  out.  Person- 
ally, I  have  very  little  use  for  horses  that  toe  out 
and  would  not  select  for  a  matron  a  mare  that 
toed  out,  no  matter  how  well  bred  she  might  be. 

THE    PERFECT    HOOF. 

The  front  of  a  colt's  hoof  should  stand  at  an 
angle  of  forty-five  degrees  to  the  ground,  or  if  not, 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

the  hoof  should  be  so  trimmed  or  shod  that  it  will 
have  that  angle. 

RING-BONE. 

I  might  say  here  that  ring-bone  in  colts  is  very 
often  caused  by  keeping  them  standing  in  stalls 
heavily  bedded.  The  colt's  ankles  are  tender  and 
the  continual  walking  around  in  the  deep  straw 
causes  the  disorder. 

AFTER  THE  RACES 

If  you  have  a  training  stable,  after  the  horses 
return  from  the  races  in  the  fall  a  competent 
blacksmith  should  go  over  the  campaigners.  If 
there  are  any  signs  of  contracted  heels,  the  horse 
should  be  shod  with  springs.  A  cut  of  3  spring 


now  in  common  use  is  presented  herewith.     The 
first  pair  was  made  and  used  at  Village  Farm. 


132 


BREEDING    THE   TROTTER 

THRUSH. 

Thrush  is  caused  by  not  cleaning  a  horse's  feet 
properly.  A  colt's  feet,  if  not  cleaned  daily, 
should  at  least  be  attended  to  three  times  a  week. 
The  brood-mare's  feet  should  be  cleaned  at  least 
once  a  week,  twice  is  better. 

If  thrush  is  not  cured,  it  will  eat  away  the  frog 
and  the  animal  will  probably  go  sore  and  lame, 
while  the  heels  will  contract. 

The  quickest  and  surest  way  to  cure  thrush  is 
to  trim  away  the  diseased  portions  of  the  foot  and 
pour  into  each  side  of  the  frog  and  into  the 
center  of  the  foot  a  small  quantity  of  what  is 
commonly  called  butter  of  antimony.  One  appli- 
cation will  cure.  Powdered  calomel  is  good,  but 
has  to  be  applied  several  times. 

Remember  that  thrush  is  caused  by  neglect  and 
will  never  bother  stock  properly  cared  for. 

CARE    OF    TEETH 

Equally  important  as  the  care  of  the  feet  is  the 
care  of  the  teeth.  A  colt's  teeth  should  be  first 
floated  with  a  fine  file,  when  the  colt  is  from  five 
to  eight  months  old. 

When  the  teeth  are  shedding  if  the  caps  do  not 
come  off  I  would  assist  nature  by  using  forceps, 
or  you  may  call  your  veterinarian.  Also  watch 
the  colts  when  their  molars  are  shedding,  as  it 
sometimes  leaves  them  in  bad  condition,  indicated 
by  tucked-up  flanks  and  a  ruffled  coat. 

From  the  time  a  horse  is  four  years  old  its  teeth 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

should  be  dressed  by  a  competent  man  every  year. 
I  prefer  to  have  this  done  in  November  or  in 
December. 

All  horses  on  the  farm  should  be  attended  to. 
It  will  keep  them  in  better  health  and  cause  them 
to  live  longer. 

An  important  time  to  examine  a  colt's  teeth 
is  just  before  he  is  to  be  broken  to  harness.  Often 
uneven  teeth  cause  the  colt  to  carry  its  head  side- 
ways, or  they  will  cut  its  cheek  and  make  the  colt 
nervous  and  irritable. 


134 


Chapter  Eleven 
SOME  AILMENTS  AND  DISORDERS 

Treatment  of  Barren  Mares.  —  Sweat-box.  Treatment  for 
Pneumonia.  —  Distemper.  —  When  Stallions  are  Dull.  —  Mas- 
turbation. —  Navel  Trouble.  —  Diarrhea. 

JUST  a  word  of  introduction  to  the  final  chapter, 
wherein  I  will  mention  my  methods  of  treat- 
ing certain  sicknesses,  disorders,  etc.     I  will 
make  no  attempt  to  write  a  chapter  on  "  Every 
Horseman  His  Own  Doctor,"  but  will  merely  re- 
cord my  methods  of  treatment  (some  original)  in 
certain  cases  where  I  have  had  good  success. 

TREATMENT  OF  BARREN  MARES. 

My  treatment  of  barren  mares  has  been  exten- 
sive and  successful,  and  while  on  Village  Farm  a 
large  number  of  mares  were  shipped  to  me  for 
treatment  from  all  parts  of  the  country. 

One  of  my  "  star  "  cases  was  Lady  Bunker,  the 
dam  of  Guy  Wilkes  (2.15^4).  She  had  been  bar- 
ren for  seven  years  and  had  been  treated  by  com- 
petent veterinarians  in  Kentucky  before  being 
shipped  to  me.  After  undergoing  my  treatment 
she  was  gotten  in  foal  at  the  first  service,  and  pro- 
duced three  foals,  one  of  them  being  Welcome 
Bunker,  the  dam  of  Cheery  Lass  (2.03^)  and 
King  Direct  (2.05^).  Another  "star"  case  was 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

Gleam,  the  dam  of  Rex  Americus  (2.11^).  She 
had  not  produced  for  two  years  and  had  been 
given  up  as  barren,  but  succumbed  to  first  treat- 
ment. 

My  first  step  in  treating  a  barren  mare  is  to  get 
her  in  the  best  possible  physical  condition.  In 
order  to  purify  the  blood  I  give  a  tonic  three  times 
a  day,  for  from  two  to  three  weeks  before  com- 
mencing treatment. 

Mares  are  usually  barren  for  two  reasons:  (i) 
because  of  contracted  womb,  the  mouth  of  which 
is  often  nearly  closed,  and  (2)  because  of  leucor- 
rhea,  or  what  is  commonly  called  "  whites,"  when 
the  womb  is  in  a  loose,  flabby  condition.  The 
latter  condition  is  hardest  to  treat  in  order  to  get 
the  mare  in  proper  condition  to  breed. 

To  determine  the  condition  of  the  womb,  a  spec- 
ulum should  be  used.  If  some  one  experienced  in 
the  use  of  the  same  is  not  at  hand,  the  assistance 
of  a  veterinarian  should  be  sought. 

If,  on  examination,  you  find  the  womb  closed, 
insert  an  Eureka  Pregnator  into  the  mouth  of  the 
womb,  leaving  it  there  for  from  twenty-four  to 
thirty-six  hours.  After  removing  it,  wash  out 
the  mare  with  warm  distilled  water,  to  every  three 
pints  of  which  one  ounce  of  creoline  has  been  thor- 
oughly mixed.  Breed  the  mare  at  once. 

In  case  the  womb  is  discovered  to  be  loose  and 
flabby,  wait  till  the  mare  comes  in  season  and 
wash  out  the  womb  in  the  morning  with  warm 
distilled  water,  to  every  two  quarts  of  which  has 
been  added  one  drachm  of  sulphate  of  zinc.  In 

136 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

the  evening  wash  out  the  womb  with  two  quarts 
of  water  to  which  has  been  added  two  tablespoon- 
fuls  of  a  solution  of  permanganate-potash.  Use 
a  force  pump  with  the  wash.  Continue  this  wash- 
ing every  day  while  the  mare  is  in  season.  Then 
let  her  run  eighteen  or  twenty-one  days.  When 
in  season  again,  continue  the  washing.  When  she 
comes  in  season  the  third  time  examine  the  womb 
and  if  it  is  apparently  in  perfect  condition  breed 
the  mare.  If  not,  continue  the  washing  till  it  is. 
I  have  never  failed  in  following  this  method. 

SWEAT-BOX  TREATMENT  FOR  PNEUMONIA. 

As  a  rule  the  first  symptoms  of  pneumonia  and 
pleurisy  are  a  chill,  after  which  the  temperature 
(which  at  normal  is  between  ninety-nine  degrees 
and  one  hundred  degrees)  runs  up  to  one  hundred 
and  two  degrees  or  higher.  Sometimes  there  is  a 
short  cough.  The  animal  is  dull,  the  skin  is  hot 
but  the  legs  remain  cold.  Usually  the  animal  is 
in  such  pain  it  grunts  when  turning  around  in  the 
stall,  or  when  one  presses  against  its  side  back  of 
the  forearm. 

If  the  case  is  taken  in  hand  just  as  soon  as  the 
chill  is  noticed  and  tincture  of  aconite  be  given 
according  to  directions,  the  disease  may  be  warded 
off.  But  if  it  progresses  and  fever  sets  in  put  the 
horse  into  a  sweat-box. 

There  should  be  one  of  these  on  every  stock 
farm.  The  sweat-box  is  a  stall  sixteen  by  twenty 
feet,  and  eight  feet  high,  double  sealed  with  tar 
paper,  made  perfectly  tight.  There  should  be  a 

137 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

ventilator  in  the  center  of  the  ceiling  to  regulate 
the  temperature  and  two  windows  on  each  side 
of  the  stall  which  may  be  let  down  from  the  top. 
In  one  corner  of  the  stall,  with  a  heavy  bar  around 
it,  place  a  large- heavy  stove,  which  will  burn  hard 
wood  or  soft  coal.  The  floor  on  which  the  stove 
sits  and  the  walls  about  it  should  be  covered  with 
zinc. 

When  a  horse  is  taken  with  pneumonia  start  the 
sweat-box  fire  and  run  the  temperature  of  the 
room  up  to  one  hundred  and  twenty  degrees  or 
one  hundred  and  thirty  degrees,  or  even  one  hun- 
dred and  forty  degrees.  Lead  the  horse  in  and 
tie  it  up.  Have  an  attendant  to  care  for  the  horse 
and  keep  the  fire  going.  The  average  man  will 
not  be  able  to  remain  with  the  horse  all  the  time 
it  is  in  the  sweat-box,  and  it  will  usually  be  neces- 
sary to  have  two  attendants,  who  will  relieve  each 
other  every  fifteen  minutes  or  half  an  hour. 

Give  the  horse  all  the  cold  water  it  will  drink. 
In  the  course  of  half  an  hour  the  horse  will  com- 
mence to  sweat.  Wait  till  the  sweat  begins  to 
run  down  his  legs  and  drop  on  the  floor  and  then 
scrape  the  horse  as  you  would  a  trotter  that  has 
just  finished  a  stiff  mile  on  a  warm  summer's  day. 
After  this,  open  the  ventilator  so  that  the  warm 
air  will  escape  gradually.  Let  the  fire  die  down. 
The  attendants  should  rub  the  horse  down  and 
do  him  up  as  they  would  a  race-horse.  This  treat- 
ment will  take  from  two  and  one-half  to  three 
hours,  when  the  temperature  of  the  room  should 
be  down  to  about  fifty-five  degrees  or  sixty  degrees. 

138 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

When  the  horse  is  ready  to  blanket,  and  before 
doing  so,  take  some  lung  salve  or  antiphlogistine 
and  apply  it  on  each  side  of  the  horse  over  the 
lungs,  or  just  back  of  the  forearms.  Rub  the  salve 
in  thoroughly  and  then  smooth  the  hair  down. 
Also  rub  some  of  the  salve  around  the  horse's 
throat.  After  this  blanket  the  horse.  Put  a  good 
woolen  sweat  blanket  next  to  the  body  and  a  body 
blanket  and  hood  over  this,  then  take  the  animal 
to  a  stall  in  which  the  temperature  is  around  fifty 
degrees  or  fifty-five  degrees.  See  that  this  stall  is 
well  ventilated,  but  without  drafts,  and  that  the 
horse  has  plenty  of  fresh  air  to  breathe.  Give  it 
all  the  fresh  cold  water  it  will  drink. 

From  now  on  give  twenty  drops  of  tincture  of 
aconite  root  every  four  hours,  according  to  direc- 
tions, until  the  fever  goes  down,  but  never  con- 
tinue it  beyond  six  doses  and  give  it  no  oftener 
than  once  in  four  hours. 

I  have  never  had  a  case  of  pneumonia,  taken  in 
time,  that  was  not  cured  with  this  treatment.  In 
one  case  the  horse's  fever  went  to  one  hundred 
and  seven  degrees,  although  one  hundred  and  four 
degrees  is  usually  considered  dangerous.  Usually 
in  forty-eight  hours  the  horse's  temperature  will 
be  normal,  and  the  animal  ready  for  use,  but  care 
should  be  exercised  for  a  week  or  two  to  see  that 
the  horse  is  not  subjected  to  sudden  changes  in 
temperature. 

DISTEMPER. 

All  young  horses  are  subject  to  distemper  some- 
time during  their  lives,  but  generally  between  one 

139 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

and  three  years  of  age.  Distemper  often  breaks 
out  in  the  fall  of  the  year  when  the  colts  are  run- 
ning out  cold  nights  or  during  rainy  weather. 
Many  colts  get  the  disease  in  the  spring.  A  horse 
has  distemper  but  once  in  a  lifetime. 

The  most  positive  first  symptom  of  the  disease, 
outside  of  a  general  depression,  is  the  swelling  of 
the  glands  under  the  jaw.  This  takes  the  form  of 
a  kernel,  or  tumor,  which  is  very  sensitive  to  the 
touch. 

If  the  colts  are  running  out  take  them  in  imme- 
diately and  confine  them  in  separate  stalls  as  the 
disease  is  contagious.  Place  the  sick  colt  in  an 
isolated  stall.  Try  to  head  off  the  disease,  and 
thoroughly  anoint  the  swollen  parts  with  the  fol- 
lowing ointment,  clipping  the  hair  away,  if  neces- 
sary: lard,  two  pounds;  tobacco,  one-quarter  of  a 
pound ;  spirits  of  turpentine,  one-quarter  of  a  pint ; 
tincture  lobelia,  two  ounces ;  camphor,  two  ounces. 
After  mixing  the  ointment  place  it  on  a  slow  fire 
and  let  it  simmer  a  while.  Stir  it  constantly. 
After  the  ointment  is  thoroughly  mixed  take  it  off 
the  fire  and  stir  till  cold. 

As  a  rule  the  colt's  temperature  will  run  up  to 
from  one  hundred  and  two  degrees  to  one  hundred 
and  four  degrees.  If  you  cannot  head  off  the  dis- 
ease and  the  swelling  increases  prepare  a  flax-seed 
poultice  about  as  hot  as  you  can  mix  with  bare 
hands  and  apply  to  under  jaw  with  an  eight-tailed 
bandage,  as  shown  in  cut.  Change  the  poultice 
every  two  or  three  hours.  When  the  pus  of  the 
swelling  comes  to  a  head,  it  will  probably  break 

140 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

of  its  own  accord.     If  not,  use  a  lance  to  open  the 
swelling  and  let  pus  out. 


After  this  get  the  colt  in  good  condition.  Dur- 
ing the  disease  and  convalescence,  the  use  of  Stock 
Food  will  be  found  strengthening  and  beneficial, 
acting  as  a  tonic. 

Speaking  of  Stock  Food,  I  wish  to  state  that  I 
have  fed  a  great  deal  of  it  to  horses  of  all  ages  and 
find  it  beneficial  in  aiding  the  digestion  and  as- 
similation of  food  and  in  strengthening  the  entire 
system.  It  gives  horses  brighter  coats  and  better 
appetites.  It  makes  brood-mares  and  stallions 
surer  foal-getters  and,  in  my  opinion,  will  cause 
them  to  produce  stronger  foals. 

WHEN  STALLIONS  ARE  DULL. 

When  stallions  are  dull  and  not  very  anxious 
to  cover  mares,  give  them  shorter,  quicker  jog 
work  and  a  drachm  of  mix  vomica  and  a  drachm 
of  iron,  separately,  once  or  twice  a  day. 

MASTURBATION. 

When  stallions  masturbate  or  abuse  themselves 
give  them  one  or  two  drachms  of  gum  camphor 
every  day. 

141 


BREEDING  THE  TROTTER 

NAVEL  TROUBLE. 

If  a  foal  has  navel  trouble,  lay  it  on  its  side, 
with  two  helpers  to  hold  its  head  and  hind  legs. 
Take  a  catheter,  with  bulb  syringe  attachment, 
and  pass  it  up  the  navel  cord,  injecting  a  solution 
of  one-quarter  ounce  of  creoline  and  two  ounces 
of  warm  sterilized  water.  The  navel  channel 
divides,  one  channel  running  to  each  kidney.  In- 
sert the  catheter  as  far  as  you  can  make  an  opening 
without  forcing.  Make  an  injection  in  each  chan- 
nel. The  injection  will  prove  healing  and  soothing 
and  should  be  continued  till  the  navel  is  healed 
up  and  closed.  After  making  the  first  injection 
the  colt  should  be  given  a  half  teaspoonful  of 
sulphite  (not  sulphate)  of  soda  in  a  little  water 
from  a  rubber  bottle,  first  four  or  five  days  till  a 
cure  is  effected. 

During  this  trouble  pus  is  liable  to  form  around 
the  knees  or  hock  or  even  abdomen.  I  do  not 
advise  lancing.  Nature  will  remove  the  foreign 
matter. 

DIARRHEA. 

The  blackberry  cordial  previously  mentioned 
for  diarrhea  is  made  as  follows : 

Take  one-half  bushel  of  fresh  blackberry  roots, 
washed  clean  and  cut  up  in  sticks  about  four 
inches  long;  to  this  add  one-quarter  pound  of 
cinnamon,  one-quarter  pound  of  cloves,  one- 
quarter  pound  of  allspice.  These  spices  must  be 
whole.  Put  on  to  boil  in  either  granite  or  porce- 
lain kettles,  with  enough  water  to  just  cover  the 
contents.  Boil  for  two  hours,  then  strain  and 

142 


BREEDING    THE    TROTTER 

add  five  pounds  of  loaf  sugar  and  boil  to  a  syrup. 
Then  add  one  quart  of  the  best  brandy.  Bottle 
up  in  jugs  or  bottles.  I  prefer  quart  bottles. 
This  should  make  one  and  one-half  gallons. 

The  dose  for  colts  from  three  days  to  a  week  old 
is  one-half  ounce  three  times  a  day,  or  oftener 
if  necessary.  This  treatment  should  stop  the 
trouble  in  from  one  to  two  days.  Colts  older  than 
a  month  should  have  double  the  above  dose. 

I  might  mention  that  this  remedy  is  very  effi- 
cient for  humans,  the  dose  for  children  from  six 
months  to  a  year  being  from  twenty-five  drops 
to  half  a  teaspoonful  every  three  hours  until 
relieved,  then  stretch  the  doses  farther  apart  till 
well. 


ALPHABETICAL  INDEX 

Page 

Advertising  and  Catalogues 127 

Age  at  which  to  Sell,  The  Best 115 

Ailments  and  Disorders,  Some 135 

Almonarch 67 

Almont  Jr 32,  66 

Athanio 38 

Bandage,  Head 141 

Bandages  and  Washes,  Uses  of 112 

Barn,   Main 57 

Barn,  Plan  of  First  Floor 60 

Barn,  Plan  of  Front  Elevation 59 

Barn,  Plan  of  One- Half  Cross  Section 61 

Barn,  Plan  of  Side  Elevation 61 

Barren  Mares,  Treatment  of 135 

Beauty  and  Speed 41 

Betting  System,  A 17 

Blood  Lines 69 

Breaking  to  Bit 103 

Breeding  Pen 78,  79,  81 

Breeding  Records 127 

Breeding  the  Mare    90 

Brood-Mare,  Importance  of 40 

Brood-Mare,  My  First 3 

Brood-Mares,  Selecting 45 

Brood-Mare  Sheds 62 

Brood-Mare,  The 83 

Brood-Mare,  Care  of 85,  86 

Buffalo,  Back  to 15 

Buffalo,  On  to 12 

Business  Principles 119 

Cart,  Hooking  to 105 

Catalogue,  The  First 39 

Challenge,  A 43 

Chimes 36 

Colts,  Young 130 

Concrete  Examples — Almont  Jr 66 

Corns 131 

Covering  the  Mare 78 

Culls    117 

"  Derricked  " 13 

Developed  Mares,  Age  at  which  to  Breed 94 

Developing,  Method  of 107 

Diarrhea  .  .143 


ALPHABETICAL    INDEX 

Page 

Diet,  Mare  on  Winter 94 

Direct  Hal 38 

Distemper 140 

"  Dr.  Green  " 107 

Estabella    31 

Failures,  Causes  of 128 

Farmer,  A  Full-Fledged 8 

Farm,  Size  of 51 

Farm  Superintendent,  The 64 

Feeding 77,  108 

Feet  and  Teeth,  Care  of  the 130 

Feet,  Care  of 130 

Feet,  Packing  of 112 

Fencing 56 

Foal,  Preparing  for  the 87 

Futurity  Candidate,  A 107 

Golddust 24 

Golden   Gateway 38 

Grooms 126 

Ground-Breaking    104 

Halter-Breaking 101 

Hambletonian,  Mare  Not  Covered  by 6 

Hamlin,  Mr.,  First  Mare  of 23 

Hamlin,  Mr.,  First  Team  of 24 

Hamlin,  Mr.,  Theory  of  Breeding 40 

Hamlin  Patchen 23 

"  Handsomest  Horse  in  the  World,  The  " 33 

Hoof,  The  Perfect 131 

Horse,  My  First 2 

Horses,  Aged 113 

Hotel  Keeper  and  Public  Trainer,  A 9 

Ice  Racing 12 

Ideal  Brood-Mare,  The 1 84 

Ideal  Stock  Farm 20 

Ideal  Stock  Farm  Track 54 

Impressions,   First 98 

Inbreeding 96 

Incidentals 118 

International  Stock  Food 141 

Jane  Brown 3 

Land,  Acres  of,  per  Head 51 

Lead  Pony,  Beside  the 103 

Liveryman,  A 10 

Location 49 

Mambrino  King 32 

Mare  and  Colt  after  Foaling,  Care  of 88 

Mare  and  Colt  in  Pasture,  Care  of 91 

Mares,  Best  Way  to  Purchase 83 


ALPHABETICAL   INDEX 

Page 

Masturbation 142 

Mate,  Selecting  a 97 

Mermaid  and  Dictator  Maid 25 

Minnequa  Maid 27 

Muscles  and  Speed,  Developing 106 

Natural  Speed,  Importance  of 99 

Navel   Trouble 142 

Nettie  Murphy 27 

Paddocks   56 

Paddocks,  Water  in 58 

Pedigree 85 

Pelham  Tartar  Jr 4 

Personal 1 

Pneumonia,  Sweat-Box  Treatment  for 137 

Prediction,  A 45 

Premier,  Purchasing  a 28,  65 

Purchases,  More 29 

Race,  My  First 10 

Race-Track,  First  Day  on  a 6 

Races,  After  the 132 

Revenue,  Sources  of 127 

Rex  Americus 38 

Ring-Bone   132 

Reading  It 10 

Sales  and  the  Show  Rings,  Preparing  for  the 115 

Sales,  Preparing  for 116 

Shoeing 105 

Show  Horses 117 

Shows,  Preparing  for 117 

Sires,  Developed 42 

Sires,  Over- Developed 66 

Soil 50 

Speed,  Natural 69 

Spring,  Cut  of 132 

Stables 57 

Stallion,  Care  of 76 

Stallion,  My  First 5 

Stallion,  My  Ideal 73 

Stallion,  Shall  He  Be  Raced? 74 

Stallion,  The 65 

Stallion's  Dam,  The 71 

Stallion's  Individuality,  The 71 

Stallion's  Sire,  The 70 

Stallions,  When  Dull 142 

Stock  Farm,  Founding  a 49 

Stock  Farm,  Management  of  a 119 

Stud  Book,  Ideal  Form  of 81,  82 

Stud  Season,  The 75 


ALPHABETICAL    INDEX 

Page 

Superintendent,  The 120 

Teeth,  Care  of 133 

Three-Card  Monte 7 

Thrush 133 

Track,  Cinder,  The 56 

Track,  The 53 

Tracks,  Rules  for  Laying  Out 53 

Trainer,  The 124 

Trainer,  Turning  Over  to  a Ill 

Trial  Sheet 80 

Trial  Sheet  and  Stud  Book,  The 81 

Trotter  vs.  Pacer 74 

Trotting  Nursery,  World's  Greatest 21 

Two- Year-Old  and  Older,  The 109 

Village  Farm  Graduates 18 

Village  Farm,  Superintendent  at 17 

Village  Farm  Theory  of  Breeding 21 

Village  Farm,  The  Passing  of 45 

Waste,  Sources  of 1 28 

Water 50 

Weaning  the  Colt 93 

Weanling  and  Yearling,  The 101 

Weeding  Out 26 

"  Who  Is  He?"   1 

Woful 25 

Work,  Spring 110 

Work,  Summer Ill 

Work,  Winter 109 

Yearling,  The 106 


THE  AMERICAN 
TROTTER 


By  S.  W.  PARLIN 

Editor  of  American  Horse  Breeder 

A  volume  of  320  pages  treating 
of  the  origin,  history  and  develop- 
ment of  the  trotter  and  pacer, 
with  full  page  engravings  of  notable 
horses,  past  and  present. 

"A  book  that  should  be  in  the  hands 
of  every  brood-mare  owner." 

— John  Bradburn 

PRICE  TWO  DOLLARS 

Sent,  postage  paid,  to  any  address 
in  the  United  States  or  Canada. 


AMERICAN  HORSE  BREEDER 

161  HIGH  STREET,  BOSTON,  MASS. 


HORSE- HEALTH 

Is  a  dependable  remedy  of  the  highest 
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Horse-Health  contains  absolutely  no  poisonous,  re-active  drugs 
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Sold  in  two  size  boxes,  J^-lb.  50c,  7-lb.  $5.00 

Sent  prepaid  to  all  parts  of  the  United  States  by 

HORSE-HEALTH  Co.     ::     NORWALK,  CONN. 
390  Main  Avenue 


THE  AMERICAN 
HORSE  BREEDER 


The  newsiest,  best  illustrated, 
ablest  edited  horse  paper  published. 

SUBSCRIPTION  PRICE 

$2.00  per  year  in  advance,  $1.00 
for  six  months.  $3 .00  per  year,  $1.50 
for  six  months,  to  Canada. 

SAMPLE    COPIES 
Sent  on  application.       Address 


AMERICAN  HORSE  BREEDER 

161  HIGH  STREET,  BOSTON,  MASS. 


Any  Horse 

Can  be  improved  in 
condition,  health  and 
spirits  if  given 

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Renovator  Powders 

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heat  can  make  good  in  the  next  two  if 
his  feet  have  Dr.  Daniels'  Liniment  and 

hot  water  —  it's  a  wonder. 

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the  owner  and  the  horse. 

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Information  DR.  A.  C.  DANIELS,  Inc. 
172  MILK  STREET,  BOSTON,  MASS. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

CIRCULATION  DEPARTMENT 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 
Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


• 


LD21-35m-8,'72 
(Q4189S10)476 — A-32 


General  Library 

University  of  California 

Berkeley 


TU 


